{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_54682/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_54682","id":"gutenberg_54682","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/54682","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Zuni Indians -- Folklore"],"text":"Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this\n file which includes the original illustrations.\n See 54682-h.htm or 54682-h.zip:\n (https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/54682/pg54682-images.html)\n or\n (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/54682/54682-h.zip)\n\n\n Images of the original pages are available through\n Internet Archive. See\n https://archive.org/details/zuifolktales00cushrich\n\n\n\n\n\nZU\u00d1I FOLK TALES\n\nRecorded and Translated by\n\nFRANK HAMILTON CUSHING\n\nWith an Introduction by J. W. Powell\n\n\n [Illustration: T\u00c9NATSALI]\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNew York and London\nG. P. Putnam\u2019S Sons\nThe Knickerbocker Press\n1901\n\nCopyright, 1901\nBy\nEmily T. M. Cushing\n\nThe Knickerbocker Press, New York\n\n\n\n\n [Illustration: {Photograph of Frank Hamilton Cushing}]\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF TALES\n\n\n PAGE\n THE TRIAL OF LOVERS: OR THE MAIDEN OF M\u00c1TSAKI AND THE\n RED FEATHER 1\n\n THE YOUTH AND HIS EAGLE 34\n\n THE POOR TURKEY GIRL 54\n\n HOW THE SUMMER BIRDS CAME 65\n\n THE SERPENT OF THE SEA 93\n\n THE MAIDEN OF THE YELLOW ROCKS 104\n\n THE FOSTER-CHILD OF THE DEER 132\n\n THE BOY HUNTER WHO NEVER SACRIFICED TO THE DEER HE HAD\n SLAIN: OR THE ORIGIN OF THE SOCIETY OF RATTLESNAKES 150\n\n HOW \u00c1HAIY\u00daTA AND M\u00c1TSAIL\u00c9MA STOLE THE THUNDER-STONE AND\n THE LIGHTNING-SHAFT 175\n\n THE WARRIOR SUITOR OF MOKI 185\n\n HOW THE COYOTE JOINED THE DANCE OF THE BURROWING-OWLS 203\n\n THE COYOTE WHO KILLED THE DEMON S\u00cdUIUKI: OR WHY COYOTES\n RUN THEIR NOSES INTO DEADFALLS 215\n\n HOW THE COYOTES TRIED TO STEAL THE CHILDREN OF THE\n SACRED DANCE 229\n\n THE COYOTE AND THE BEETLE 235\n\n HOW THE COYOTE DANCED WITH THE BLACKBIRDS 237\n\n HOW THE TURTLE OUT HUNTING DUPED THE COYOTE 243\n\n THE COYOTE AND THE LOCUST 255\n\n THE COYOTE AND THE RAVENS WHO RACED THEIR EYES 262\n\n THE PRAIRIE-DOGS AND THEIR PRIEST, THE BURROWING-OWL 269\n\n HOW THE GOPHER RACED WITH THE RUNNERS OF K\u2019I\u00c1KIME 277\n\n HOW THE RATTLESNAKES CAME TO BE WHAT THEY ARE 285\n\n HOW THE CORN-PESTS WERE ENSNARED 288\n\n JACK-RABBIT AND COTTONTAIL 296\n\n THE RABBIT HUNTRESS AND HER ADVENTURES 297\n\n THE UGLY WILD BOY WHO DROVE THE BEAR AWAY FROM SOUTHEASTERN\n MESA 310\n\n THE REVENGE OF THE TWO BROTHERS ON THE H\u00c1WIKUHKWE, OR THE\n TWO LITTLE ONES AND THEIR TURKEYS 317\n\n THE YOUNG SWIFT-RUNNER WHO WAS STRIPPED OF HIS CLOTHING\n BY THE AGED TARANTULA 345\n\n \u00c1TAHSAIA, THE CANNIBAL DEMON 365\n\n THE HERMIT M\u00cdTSINA 385\n\n HOW THE TWINS OF WAR AND CHANCE, \u00c1HAIY\u00daTA AND M\u00c1TSAIL\u00c9MA,\n FARED WITH THE UNBORN-MADE MEN OF THE UNDERWORLD 398\n\n THE COCK AND THE MOUSE 411\n\n THE GIANT CLOUD-SWALLOWER 423\n\n THE MAIDEN THE SUN MADE LOVE TO, AND HER BOYS: OR THE\n ORIGIN OF ANGER 429\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF PLATES\n\n\n PAGE\n PORTRAIT OF FRANK HAMILTON CUSHING _Frontispiece_\n\n THE YOUTH AND HIS EAGLE 34\n\n ZU\u00d1I FROM THE SOUTH 64\n\n WA\u00cdHUSIWA 92\n\n A BURRO TRAIN IN A ZU\u00d1I STREET 132\n\n THUNDER MOUNTAIN FROM ZU\u00d1I 174\n\n A HOPI (MOKI) MAIDEN 184\n\n A DANCE OF THE K\u00c2K\u00c2 228\n\n ACROSS THE TERRACES OF ZU\u00d1I 276\n\n THE PINNACLES OF THUNDER MOUNTAIN 344\n\n P\u00c1LOWAHTIWA 388\n\n ZU\u00d1I WOMEN CARRYING WATER 428\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION\n\n\nIt is instructive to compare superstition with science. Mythology is the\nterm used to designate the superstitions of the ancients. Folk-lore is\nthe term used to designate the superstitions of the ignorant of today.\nAncient mythology has been carefully studied by modern thinkers for\npurposes of trope and simile in the embellishment of literature, and\nespecially of poetry; then it has been investigated for the purpose of\ndiscovering its meaning in the hope that some occult significance might\nbe found, on the theory that the wisdom of the ancients was far superior\nto that of modern men. Now, science has entered this field of study to\ncompare one mythology with another, and pre-eminently to compare\nmythology with science itself, for the purpose of discovering stages of\nhuman opinion.\n\nWhen the mythology of tribal men came to be studied, it was found that\ntheir philosophy was also a mythology in which the mysteries of the\nuniverse were explained in a collection of tales told by wise men,\nprophets, and priests. This lore of the wise among savage men is of the\nsame origin and has the same significance as the lore of Hesiod and\nHomer. It is thus a mythology in the early sense of that term. But the\nmythology of tribal men is devoid of that glamour and witchery born of\npoetry; hence it seems rude and savage in comparison, for example, with\nthe mythology of the _Odyssey_, and to rank no higher as philosophic\nthought than the tales of the ignorant and superstitious which are\ncalled folk-lore; and gradually such mythology has come to be called\nfolk-lore. Folk-lore is a discredited mythology--a mythology once held\nas a philosophy. Nowadays the tales of savage men, not being credited by\ncivilized and enlightened men with that wisdom which is held to belong\nto philosophy, are called folk-lore, or sometimes folk-tales.\n\nThe folk-tales collected by Mr. Cushing constitute a charming exhibit of\nthe wisdom of the Zu\u00f1is as they believe, though it may be but a charming\nexhibit of the follies of the Zu\u00f1is as we believe.\n\nThe wisdom of one age is the folly of the next, and the opinions of\ntribal men seem childish to civilized men. Then why should we seek to\ndiscover their thoughts? Science, in seeking to know the truth about the\nuniverse, does not expect to find it in mythology or folk-lore, does not\neven consider it as a paramount end that it should be used as an\nembellishment of literature, though it serves this purpose well. Modern\nscience now considers it of profound importance to know the course of\nthe evolution of the humanities; that is, the evolution of pleasures,\nthe evolution of industries, the evolution of institutions, the\nevolution of languages, and, finally, the evolution of opinions. How\nopinions grow seems to be one of the most instructive chapters in the\nscience of psychology. Psychologists do not go to the past to find valid\nopinions, but to find stages of development in opinions; hence\nmythology or folk-lore is of profound interest and supreme importance.\n\nUnder the scriptorial wand of Cushing the folk-tales of the Zu\u00f1is are\ndestined to become a part of the living literature of the world, for he\nis a poet although he does not write in verse. Cushing can think as\nmyth-makers think, he can speak as prophets speak, he can expound as\npriests expound, and his tales have the verisimilitude of ancient lore;\nbut his sympathy with the mythology of tribal men does not veil the\nrealities of science from his mind.\n\nThe gods of Zu\u00f1i, like those of all primitive people, are the ancients\nof animals, but we must understand and heartily appreciate their simple\nthought if we would do them justice. All entities are animals--men,\nbrutes, plants, stars, lands, waters, and rocks--and all have souls. The\nsouls are tenuous existences--mist entities, gaseous creatures\ninhabiting firmer bodies of matter. They are ghosts that own bodies.\nThey can leave their bodies, or if they discover bodies that have been\nvacated they can take possession of them. Force and mind belong to\nsouls; fixed form, firm existence belong to matter, while bodies and\nsouls constitute the world. The world is a universe of animals. The\nstars are animals compelled to travel around the world by magic. The\nplants are animals under a spell of enchantment, so that usually they\ncannot travel. The waters are animals sometimes under the spell of\nenchantment. Lakes writhe in waves, the sea travels in circles about\nthe earth, and the streams run over the lands. Mountains and hills\ntremble in pain, but cannot wander about; but rocks and hills and\nmountains sometimes travel about by night.\n\nThese animals of the world come in a flood of generations, and the\nfirst-born are gods and are usually called the ancients, or the first\nones; the later-born generations are descendants of the gods, but alas,\nthey are degenerate sons.\n\nThe theatre of the world is the theatre of necromancy, and the gods are\nthe primeval wonder-workers; the gods still live, but their descendants\noften die. Death itself is the result of necromancy practiced by bad men\nor angry gods.\n\nIn every Amerindian language there is a term to express this magical\npower. Among the Iroquoian tribes it is called _orenda_; among the\nSiouan tribe some manifestations of it are called _wakan_ or _wakanda_,\nbut the generic term in this language is _hube_. Among the Shoshonean\ntribes it is called _pokunt_. Let us borrow one of these terms and call\nit \u201corenda.\u201d All unexplained phenomena are attributed to orenda. Thus\nthe venom of the serpent is orenda, and this orenda can pass from a\nserpent to an arrow by another exercise of orenda, and hence the arrow\nis charmed. The rattlesnake may be stretched beside the arrow, and an\ninvocation may be performed that will convey the orenda from the snake\nto the arrow, or the serpent may be made into a witch\u2019s stew and the\narrow dipped into the brew.\n\nNo man has contributed more to our understanding of the doctrine of\norenda as believed and practised by the Amerindian tribes than Cushing\nhimself. In other publications he has elaborately discussed this\ndoctrine, and in his lectures he was wont to show how forms and\ndecorations of implements and utensils have orenda for their motive.\n\nWhen one of the ancients--that is, one of the gods--of the Iroquois was\nplanning the streams of earth by his orenda or magical power, he\ndetermined to have them run up one side and down the other; if he had\ndone this men could float up or down at will, by passing from one side\nto the other of the river, but his wicked brother interfered and made\nthem run down on both sides; so orenda may thwart orenda.\n\nThe bird that sings is universally held by tribal men to be exercising\nits orenda. And when human beings sing they also exercise orenda; hence\nsong is a universal accompaniment of Amerindian worship. All their\nworship is thus fundamentally terpsichorean, for it is supposed that\nthey can be induced to grant favors by pleasing them.\n\nAll diseases and ailments of mankind are attributed by tribal men to\norenda, and all mythology is a theory of magic. Yet many of the tribes,\nperhaps all of them, teach in their tales of some method of introducing\ndeath and disease into the world, but it is a method by which\nsupernatural agencies can cause sickness and death.\n\nThe prophets, who are also priests, wonder-workers, and medicine-men,\nare called shamans in scientific literature. In popular literature and\nin frontier parlance they are usually called medicine-men. Shamans are\nusually initiated into the guild, and frequently there are elaborate\ntribal ceremonies for the purpose. Often individuals have revelations\nand set up to prophesy, to expel diseases, and to teach as priests. If\nthey gain a following they may ultimately exert much influence and be\ngreatly revered, but if they fail they may gradually be looked upon as\nwizards or witches, and they may be accused of black art, and in extreme\ncases may be put to death. All Amerindians believe in shamancraft and\nwitchcraft.\n\nThe myths of cosmology are usually called creation myths. Sometimes all\nmyths which account for things, even the most trivial, are called\ncreation myths. Every striking phenomenon observed by the Amerind has a\nmyth designed to account for its origin. The horn of the buffalo, the\ntawny patch on the shoulders of the rabbit, the crest of the blue-jay,\nthe tail of the magpie, the sheen of the chameleon, the rattle of the\nsnake,--in fact, everything that challenges attention gives rise to a\nmyth. Thus the folk-tales of the Amerinds seem to be inexhaustible, for\nin every language, and there are hundreds of them, a different set of\nmyths is found.\n\nIn all of these languages a strange similarity in cosmology is observed,\nin that it is a cosmology of regions or worlds. About the home world of\nthe tribe there is gathered a group of worlds, one above, another below,\nand four more: one at every cardinal point; or we may describe it as a\ncentral world, an upper world, a lower world, a northern world, a\nsouthern world, an eastern world, and a western world. All of the\nanimals of the tribes, be they human animals, tree animals, star\nanimals, water animals (that is, bodies of water), or stone animals\n(that is, mountains, hills, valleys, and rocks), have an appropriate\nhabitation in the zenith world, the nadir world, or in one of the\ncardinal worlds, and their dwelling in the center world is accounted for\nby some myth of travel to this world. All bodies and all attributes of\nbodies have a home or proper place of habitation; even the colors of the\nclouds and the rainbow and of all other objects on earth are assigned to\nthe six regions from which they come to the midworld.\n\nWe may better understand this habit of thought by considering the\nfolk-lore of civilization. Here are but three regions: heaven, earth,\nand hell. All good things come from heaven; and all bad things from\nhell. It is true that this cosmology is not entertained by scholarly\npeople. An enlightened man thinks of moral good as a state of mind in\nthe individual, an attribute of his soul, and a moral evil as the\ncharacteristic of an immoral man; but still it is practically universal\nfor even the most intelligent to affirm by a figure of speech that\nheaven is the place of good, and hell the place of evil. Now, enlarge\nthis conception so as to assign a place as the proper region for all\nbodies and attributes, and you will understand the cosmological concepts\nof the Amerinds.\n\nThe primitive religion of every Amerindian tribe is an organized system\nof inducing the ancients to take part in the affairs of men, and the\nworship of the gods is a system designed to please the gods, that they\nmay be induced to act for men, particularly the tribe of men who are the\nworshipers. Time would fail me to tell of the multitude of activities in\ntribal life designed for this purpose, but a few of them may be\nmentioned. The first and most important of all are terpsichorean\nceremonies and festivals. Singing and dancing are universal, and\nfestivals are given at appointed times and places by every tribe. The\nlong nights of winter are devoted largely to worship, and a succession\nof festival days are established, to be held at appropriate seasons for\nthe worship of the gods. Thus there are festival days for invoking rain,\nthere are festival days for thanksgiving--for harvest homes. In lands\nwhere the grasshopper is an important food there are grasshopper\nfestivals. In lands where corn is an important food there are green-corn\nfestivals; where the buffalo constituted an important part of their\naliment there were buffalo dances. So there is a bear dance or festival,\nand elk dance or festival, and a multitude of other festivals as we go\nfrom tribe to tribe, all of which are fixed at times indicated by signs\nof the zodiac. In the higher tribes elaborate calendars are devised from\nwhich we unravel their picture-writings.\n\nThe practice of medicine by the shamans is an invocation to the gods to\ndrive out evil spirits from the sick and to frighten them that they may\nleave. By music and dancing they obtain the help of the ancients, and\nby a great variety of methods they drive out the evil beings. Resort is\noften had to scarifying and searing, especially when the sick man has\ngreat local pains. All American tribes entertain a profound belief in\nthe doctrine of signatures,--_similia, similibus curantur_,--and they\nuse this belief in procuring charms as medicine to drive out the ghostly\ndiseases that plague their sick folk.\n\nNext in importance to terpsichorean worship is altar worship. The altar\nis a space cleared upon the ground, or a platform raised from the ground\nor floor of the kiva or assembly-house of the people. Around the altar\nare gathered the priests and their acolytes, and here they make prayers\nand perform ceremonies with the aid of altar-pieces of various kinds,\nespecially tablets of picture-writings on wood, bone, or the skins of\nanimals. The altar-pieces consist of representatives of the thing for\nwhich supplication is made: ears of corn or vases of meal, ewers of\nwater, parts of animals designed for food, cakes of grasshoppers, basins\nof honey, in fine any kind of food; then crystals or fragments of rock\nto signify that they desire the corn to be hard, or of honeydew that\nthey desire the corn to be sweet, or of corn of different colors that\nthey desire the corn to be of a variety of colors. That which is of\ngreat interest to students of ethnology is the system of picture-writing\nexhibited on the altars. In this a great variety of things which they\ndesire and a great variety of the characteristics of these things are\nrepresented in pictographs, or modeled in clay, or carved from wood and\nbone. The graphic art, as painting and sculpture, has its origin with\ntribal men in the development of altar-pieces. So also the drama is\nderived from primeval worship, as the modern practice of medicine has\nbeen evolved from necromancy.\n\nThere is another method of worship found in savagery, but more highly\ndeveloped in barbarism,--the worship of sacrifice. The altar-pieces and\nthe dramatic supplications of the lower stage gradually develop into a\nsacrificial stage in the higher culture. Then the objects are supposed\nto supply the ancients themselves with food and drink and the pleasures\nof life. This stage was most highly developed in Mexico, especially by\nthe Nahua or Aztec, where human beings were sacrificed. In general,\namong the Amerinds, not only are sacrifices made on the altar, but they\nare also made whenever food or drink is used. Thus the first portions of\nobjects designed for consumption are dedicated to the gods. There are in\nAmerica many examples of these pagan religions, to a greater or less\nextent affiliated in doctrine and in worship with the religion of\nChristian origin.\n\nIn the early history of the association of white men with the Seneca of\nNew York and Pennsylvania, there was in the tribe a celebrated shaman\nnamed Handsome Lake, as his Indian name is translated into English.\nHandsome Lake had a nephew who was taken by the Spaniards to Europe and\neducated as a priest. The nephew, on his return to America, told many\nBible stories to his uncle, for he speedily relapsed into paganism. The\nuncle compounded some of these Bible stories with Seneca folk-tales, and\nthrough his eloquence and great influence as a shaman succeeded in\nestablishing among the Seneca a new cult of doctrine and worship. The\nSeneca are now divided into two very distinct bodies who live together\non the same reservation,--the one are \u201cChristians,\u201d the other are\n\u201cPagans\u201d who believe and teach the cult of Handsome Lake.\n\nMr. Cushing has introduced a hybrid tale into his collection, entitled\n\u201cThe Cock and the Mouse.\u201d Such tales are found again and again among the\nAmerinds. In a large majority of cases Bible stories are compounded with\nnative stories, so that unwary people have been led to believe that the\nAmerinds are descendants of the lost tribes of Israel.\n\n J. W. Powell.\n\n Washington City,\n November, 1901.\n\n\n\n\nZU\u00d1I FOLK TALES\n\n\n\n\nTHE TRIAL OF LOVERS:\n\nOR THE MAIDEN OF M\u00c1TSAKI AND THE RED FEATHER\n\n\n(_Told the First Night_)\n\nIn the days of the ancients, when M\u00e1tsaki was the home of the children\nof men, there lived, in that town, which is called \u201cSalt City,\u201d because\nthe Goddess of Salt made a white lake there in the days of the New, a\nbeautiful maiden. She was passing beautiful, and the daughter of the\npriest-chief, who owned more buckskins and blankets than he could hang\non his poles, and whose port-holes were covered with turquoises and\nprecious shells from the ocean--so many were the sacrifices he made to\nthe gods. His house was the largest in M\u00e1tsaki, and his ladder-poles\nwere tall and decorated with slabs of carved wood--which you know was a\ngreat thing, for our grandfathers cut with the _t\u00edmush_ or flint knife,\nand even tilled their corn-fields with wooden hoes sharpened with stone\nand weighted with granite. That\u2019s the reason why all the young men in\nthe towns round about were in love with the beautiful maiden of Salt\nCity.\n\nNow, there was one very fine young man who lived across the western\nplains, in the Pueblo of the Winds. He was so filled with thoughts of\nthe maiden of M\u00e1tsaki that he labored long to gather presents for her,\nand looked not with favor on any girl of his own pueblo.\n\nOne morning he said to his fathers: \u201cI have seen the maiden of M\u00e1tsaki;\nwhat think ye?\u201d\n\n\u201cBe it well,\u201d said the old ones. So toward night the young man made a\nbundle of mantles and necklaces, which he rolled up in the best and\nwhitest buckskin he had. When the sun was setting he started toward\nM\u00e1tsaki, and just as the old man\u2019s children had gathered in to smoke and\ntalk he reached the house of the maiden\u2019s father and climbed the ladder.\nHe lifted the corner of the mat door and shouted to the people\nbelow--\u201c_Sh\u00e9!_\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hai!_\u201d answered more than a pair of voices from below.\n\n\u201cPull me down,\u201d cried the young man, at the same time showing his bundle\nthrough the sky-hole.\n\nThe maiden\u2019s mother rose and helped the young man down the ladder, and\nas he entered the fire-light he laid the bundle down.\n\n\u201cMy fathers and mothers, my sisters and friends, how be ye these many\ndays?\u201d said he, very carefully, as though he were speaking to a council.\n\n\u201cHappy! Happy!\u201d they all responded, and they said also: \u201cSit down; sit\ndown on this stool,\u201d which they placed for him in the fire-light.\n\n\u201cMy daughter,\u201d remarked the old man, who was smoking his cigarette by\nthe opposite side of the hearth-place, \u201cwhen a stranger enters the house\nof a stranger, the girl should place before him food and cooked\nthings.\u201d So the girl brought from the great vessel in the corner fresh\nrolls of _h\u00e9we_, or bread of corn-flour, thin as papers, and placed them\nin a tray before the young man, where the light would fall on them.\n\n\u201cEat!\u201d said she, and he replied, \u201cIt is well.\u201d Whereupon he sat up very\nstraight, and placing his left hand across his breast, very slowly took\na roll of the wafer bread with his right hand and ate ever so little;\nfor you know it is not well or polite to eat much when you go to see a\nstrange girl, especially if you want to ask her if she will let you live\nin the same house with her. So the young man ate ever so little, and\nsaid, \u201cThank you.\u201d\n\n\u201cEat more,\u201d said the old ones; but when he replied that he was \u201cpast the\nnaming of want,\u201d they said, \u201cHave eaten,\u201d and the girl carried the tray\naway and swept away the crumbs.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the old man, after a short time, \u201cwhen a stranger enters\nthe house of a stranger, it is not thinking of nothing that he enters.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, that is quite true,\u201d said the youth, and then he waited.\n\n\u201cThen what may it be that thou hast come thinking of?\u201d added the old\nman.\n\n\u201cI have heard,\u201d said the young man, \u201cof your daughter, and have seen\nher, and it was with thoughts of her that I came.\u201d\n\nJust then the grown-up sons of the old man, who had come to smoke and\nchat, rose and said to one another: \u201cIs it not about time we should be\ngoing home? The stars must be all out.\u201d Thus saying, they bade the old\nones to \u201cwait happily until the morning,\u201d and shook hands with the young\nman who had come, and went to the homes of their wives\u2019 mothers.\n\n\u201cListen, my child!\u201d said the old man after they had gone away, turning\ntoward his daughter, who was sitting near the wall and looking down at\nthe beads on her belt fringe. \u201cListen! You have heard what the young man\nhas said. What think you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy! I know not; but what should I say but \u2018Be it well,\u2019\u201d said the\ngirl, \u201cif thus think my old ones?\u201d\n\n\u201cAs you may,\u201d said the old man; and then he made a cigarette and smoked\nwith the young man. When he had thrown away his cigarette he said to the\nmother: \u201cOld one, is it not time to stretch out?\u201d\n\nSo when the old ones were asleep in the corner, the girl said to the\nyouth, but in a low voice: \u201cOnly possibly you love me. True, I have said\n\u2018Be it well\u2019; but before I take your bundle and say \u2018thanks,\u2019 I would\nthat you, to prove that you verily love me, should go down into my\ncorn-field, among the lands of the priest-chief, by the side of the\nriver, and hoe all the corn in a single morning. If you will do this,\nthen shall I know you love me; then shall I take of your presents, and\nhappy we will be together.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied the young man; \u201cI am willing.\u201d\n\nThen the young girl lighted a bundle of cedar splints and showed him a\nroom which contained a bed of soft robes and blankets, and, placing her\nfather\u2019s hoe near the door, bade the young man \u201cwait happily unto the\nmorning.\u201d\n\nSo when she had gone he looked at the hoe and thought: \u201cHa! if that be\nall, she shall see in the morning that I am a man.\u201d\n\nAt the peep of day over the eastern mesa he roused himself, and,\nshouldering the wooden hoe, ran down to the corn-fields; and when, as\nthe sun was coming out, the young girl awoke and looked down from her\nhouse-top, \u201cAha!\u201d thought she, \u201che is doing well, but my children and I\nshall see how he gets on somewhat later. I doubt if he loves me as much\nas he thinks he does.\u201d\n\nSo she went into a closed room. Down in the corner stood a water jar,\nbeautifully painted and as bright as new. It looked like other water\njars, but it was not. It was wonderful, wonderful! for it was covered\nwith a stone lid which held down many may-flies and gnats and\nmosquitoes. The maiden lifted the lid and began to speak to the little\nanimals as though she were praying.\n\n\u201cNow, then, my children, this day fly ye forth all, and in the\ncorn-fields by the river there shall ye see a young man hoeing. So hard\nis he working that he is stripped as for a race. Go forth and seek him.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Tsu-nu-nu-nu_,\u201d said the flies, and \u201c_Tsi-ni-ni-ni_,\u201d sang the gnats\nand mosquitoes; which meant \u201cYes,\u201d you know.\n\n\u201cAnd,\u201d further said the girl, \u201cwhen ye find him, bite him, his body all\nover, and eat ye freely of his blood; spare not his armpits, neither his\nneck nor his eyelids, and fill his ears with humming.\u201d\n\nAnd again the flies said, \u201c_Tsu-nu-nu-nu_,\u201d and the mosquitoes and\ngnats, \u201c_Tsi-ni-ni-ni._\u201d Then, _nu-u-u_, away they all flew like a cloud\nof sand on a windy morning.\n\n\u201cBlood!\u201d exclaimed the young man. He wiped the sweat from his face and\nsaid, \u201cThe gods be angry!\u201d Then he dropped his hoe and rubbed his shins\nwith sand and slapped his sides. \u201c_Atu!_\u201d he yelled; \u201cwhat matters--what\nin the name of the Moon Mother matters with these little beasts that\ncause thoughts?\u201d Whereupon, crazed and restless as a spider on hot\nashes, he rolled in the dust, but to no purpose, for the flies and gnats\nand mosquitoes sang \u201c_hu-n-n_\u201d and \u201c_tsi-ni-ni_\u201d about his ears until he\ngrabbed up his blanket and breakfast, and ran toward the home of his\nfathers.\n\n\u201c_Wa-ha ha! Ho o!_\u201d laughed a young man in the Tented Pueblo to the\nnorth, when he heard how the lover had fared. \u201c_Shoom!_\u201d he sneered.\n\u201cMuch of a man he must have been to give up the maid of M\u00e1tsaki for\nmay-flies and gnats and mosquitoes!\u201d So on the very next morning, he,\ntoo, said to his old ones: \u201cWhat a fool that little _boy_ must have\nbeen. I will visit the maiden of M\u00e1tsaki. I\u2019ll show the people of P\u00ednawa\nwhat a H\u00e1mpasawan man can do. Courage!\u201d--and, as the old ones said \u201cBe\nit well,\u201d he went as the other had gone; but, pshaw! he fared no better.\n\nAfter some time, a young man who lived in the River Town heard about it\nand laughed as hard as the youth of the Tented Pueblo had. He called the\ntwo others fools, and said that \u201cgirls were not in the habit of asking\nmuch when one\u2019s bundle was large.\u201d And as he was a young man who had\neverything, he made a bundle of presents as large as he could carry; but\nit did him no good. He, too, ran away from the may-flies and gnats and\nmosquitoes.\n\nMany days passed before any one else would try again to woo the maiden\nof M\u00e1tsaki. They did not know, it is true, that she was a Passing Being;\nbut others had failed all on account of mosquitoes and may-flies and\nlittle black gnats, and had been more satisfied with shame than a full\nhungry man with food. \u201cThat is sick satisfaction,\u201d they would say to one\nanother, the fear of which made them wait to see what others would do.\n\nNow, in the Ant Hill, which was named H\u00e1lonawan,[1] lived a handsome\nyoung man, but he was poor, although the son of the priest-chief of\nH\u00e1lonawan. He thought many days, and at last said to his grandmother,\nwho was very old and crafty, \u201c_H\u00f3-ta?_\u201d\n\n [1] The ancient pueblo of Zu\u00f1i itself was called H\u00e1lonawan, or\n the Ant Hill, the ruins of which, now buried beneath the sands,\n lie opposite the modern town within the cast of a stone. Long\n before H\u00e1lonawan was abandoned, the nucleus of the present\n structure was begun around one of the now central plazas. It was\n then, and still is, in the ancient songs and rituals of the\n Zu\u00f1is, _H\u00e1lona-\u00edtiwana_, or the \u201cMiddle Ant Hill of the World,\u201d\n and was often spoken of in connection with the older town as\n simply the \u201cAnt Hill.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat sayest my _n\u00e1na_?\u201d said the old woman; for, like grandmothers\nnowadays, she was very soft and gentle to her grandson.\n\n\u201cI have seen the maiden of M\u00e1tsaki and my thoughts kill me with longing,\nfor she is passing beautiful and wisely slow. I do not wonder that she\nasks hard tasks of her lovers; for it is not of their bundles that she\nthinks, but of themselves. Now, I strengthen my thoughts with my\nmanliness. My heart is hard against weariness, and I would go and speak\nto the beautiful maiden.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Yo \u00e1!_ my poor boy,\u201d said the grandmother. \u201cShe is as wonderful as she\nis wise and beautiful. She thinks not of men save as brothers and\nfriends; and she it is, I bethink me, who sends the may-flies and gnats\nand mosquitoes, therefore, to drive them away. They are but disguised\nbeings, and beware, my grandson, you will only cover yourself with shame\nas a man is covered with water who walks through a rain-storm! I would\nnot go, my poor grandchild. I would not go,\u201d she added, shaking her head\nand biting her lips till her chin touched her nose-tip.\n\n\u201cYes, but I must go, my grandmother. Why should I live only to breathe\nhard with longing? Perhaps she will better her thoughts toward me.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, yes, but all the same, she will test thee. Well, go to the\nmountains and scrape bitter bark from the finger-root; make a little\nloaf of the bark and hide it in your belt, and when the maiden sends you\ndown to the corn-field, work hard at the hoeing until sunrise. Then,\nwhen your body is covered with sweat-drops, rub every part with the\nroot-bark. The finger-root bark, it is bitter as bad salt mixed in with\nbad water, and the \u2018horn-wings\u2019 and \u2018long-beaks\u2019 and \u2018blue-backs\u2019 fly\nfar from the salt that is bitter.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, my gentle grandmother, I will try your words and thank you,\u201d--for\nhe was as gentle and good as his grandmother was knowing and crafty.\nEven that day he went to the mountains and gathered a ball of\nfinger-root. Then, toward evening, he took a little bundle and went up\nthe trail by the river-side to M\u00e1tsaki. When he climbed the ladder and\nshouted down the mat door: \u201c_Sh\u00e9!_ Are ye within?\u201d the people did not\nanswer at once, for the old ones were angry with their daughter that she\nhad sent off so many fine lovers. But when he shouted again they\nanswered:\n\n\u201c_Hai_, and _\u00c9e_, we are within. Be yourself within.\u201d\n\nThen without help he went down the ladder, but he didn\u2019t mind, for he\nfelt himself poor and his bundle was small. As he entered the fire-light\nhe greeted the people pleasantly and gravely, and with thanks took the\nseat that was laid for him.\n\nNow, you see, the old man was angry with the girl, so he did not tell\nher to place cooked things before him, but turned to his old wife.\n\n\u201cOld one,\u201d he began--but before he had finished the maiden arose and\nbrought rich venison stew and flaky _h\u00e9we_, which she placed before the\nyouth where the fire\u2019s brightness would fall upon it, with meat broth\nfor drink; then she sat down opposite him and said, \u201cEat and drink!\u201d\nWhereupon the young man took a roll of the wafer-bread and, breaking it\nin two, gave the girl the larger piece, which she bashfully accepted.\n\nThe old man raised his eyebrows and upper lids, looked at his old wife,\nspat in the fireplace, and smoked hard at his cigarette, joining the\ngirl in her invitation by saying, \u201cYes, have to eat well.\u201d\n\nSoon the young man said, \u201cThanks,\u201d and the maiden quickly responded,\n\u201cEat more,\u201d and \u201cHave eaten.\u201d\n\nAfter brushing the crumbs away the girl sat down by her mother, and the\nfather rolled a cigarette for the young man and talked longer with him\nthan he had with the others.\n\nAfter the old ones had stretched out in the corner and begun to \u201cscrape\ntheir nostrils with their breath,\u201d the maiden turned to the young man\nand said: \u201cI have a corn-field in the lands of the priest-chief, down by\nthe river, and if you truly love me, I would that you should hoe the\nwhole in a single morning. Thus may you prove yourself a man, and to\nlove me truly; and if you will do this, happily, as day follows day,\nwill we live each with the other.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hai-\u00ed!_\u201d replied the young man, who smiled as he listened; and as the\nyoung maiden looked at him, sitting in the fading fire-light with the\nsmile on his face, she thought: \u201cOnly possibly. But oh! how I wish his\nheart might be strong, even though his bundle be not heavy nor large.\n\n\u201cCome with me, young man, and I will show you where you are to await\nthe morning. Early take my father\u2019s hoe, which stands by the doorway,\nand go down to the corn-field long before the night shadows have run\naway from Thunder Mountain\u201d--with which she bade him pass a night of\ncontentment and sought her own place.\n\nWhen all was still, the young man climbed to the sky-hole and in the\nstarlight asked the gods of the woodlands and waters to give strength to\nhis hands and power to his prayer-medicine, and to meet and bless him\nwith the light of their favor; and he threw to the night-wind meal of\nthe seeds of earth and the waters of the world with which those who are\nwise fail not to make smooth their trails of life. Then he slept till\nthe sky of the day-land grew yellow and the shadows of the night-land\ngrew gray, and then shouldered his hoe and went down to the corn-field.\nHis task was not great, for the others had hoed much. Where they left\noff, there he fell to digging right and left with all his strength and\nhaste, till the hard soil mellowed and the earth flew before his strokes\nas out of the burrows of the strongest-willed gophers and other digging\ncreatures.\n\nWhen the sun rose the maiden looked forth and saw that his task was\nalready half done. But still she waited. As the sun warmed the day and\nthe youth worked on, the dewdrops of flesh stood all over his body and\nhe cast away, one after the other, his blanket and sash and even his\nleggings and moccasins. Then he stopped to look around. By the side of\nthe field grew tall yellow-tops. He ran into the thicket and rubbed\nevery part of his body, yea, even the hair of his head and his ear-tips\nand nostrils, with the bark of the finger-root. Again he fell to work as\nthough he had only been resting, and wondered why the may-flies and\ngnats and mosquitoes came not to cause him thoughts as they had the\nothers. Yet still the girl lingered; but at last she went slowly to the\nroom where the jar stood.\n\n\u201cIt is absurd,\u201d thought she, \u201cthat I should hope it or even care for it;\nit would indeed be great if it were well true that a young man should\nlove me so verily as to hold his face to the front through such a\ntesting.\u201d Nevertheless, she drew the lid off and bade her strange\nchildren to spare him no more than they had the others.\n\nAll hasty to feast themselves on the \u201cwaters of life,\u201d as our old\ngrandfathers would say for blood, again they rushed out and hummed along\nover the corn-fields in such numbers that they looked more like a\nwind-driven sandstorm than ever, and \u201c_tsi-ni-ni-i, tso-no-o_,\u201d they\nhummed and buzzed about the ears of the young man when they came to him,\nso noisily that the poor fellow, who kept at work all the while, thought\nthey were already biting him. But it was only fancy, for the first\nmay-fly that did bite him danced in the air with disgust and exclaimed\nto his companions, \u201c_Sho-o-o-m-m!_\u201d and \u201c_Us-\u00e1!_\u201d which meant that he\nhad eaten something nasty, that tasted as badly as vile odors smell. So\nnot another may-fly in the throng would bite, although they all kept\nsinging their song about his ears. And to this day may-flies are\ncareful whom they bite, and dance a long time in the air before they do\nit.\n\nThen a gnat tried it and gasped, \u201c_Weh!_\u201d which meant that his stomach\nhad turned over, and he had such a sick headache that he reeled round\nand round in the air, and for that reason gnats always bite very\nquickly, for fear their stomachs will turn over, and they will reel and\nreel round and round in the air before doing it.\n\nFinally, long-beak himself tried it, and, as long-beak hangs on, you\nknow, longer than most other little beasts, he kept hold until his two\nhindlegs were warped out of shape; but at last he had to let go, too,\nand flew straight away, crying, \u201c_Y\u00e1 kotchi!_\u201d which meant that\nsomething bitter had burned his snout. Now, for these reasons mosquitoes\nalways have bent-up hindlegs, which they keep lifting up and down while\nbiting, as though they were standing on something hot, and they are apt\nto sing and smell around very cautiously before spearing us, and they\nfly straight away, you will notice, as soon as they are done.\n\nNow, when the rest of the gnats and mosquitoes heard the words of their\nelder brothers, they did as the may-flies had done--did not venture, no,\nnot one of them, to bite the young lover. They all flew away and settled\ndown on the yellow-tops, where they had a council, and decided to go and\nfind some prairie-dogs to bite. Therefore you will almost always find\nmay-flies, gnats, and mosquitoes around prairie-dog holes in summer time\nwhen the corn is growing.\n\nSo the young man breathed easily as he hoed hard to finish his task ere\nthe noon-day, and when the maiden looked down and saw that he still\nlabored there, she said to herself: \u201cAh, indeed he must love me, for\nstill he is there! Well, it _may be_, for only a little longer and they\nwill leave him in peace.\u201d Hastily she placed venison in the cooking-pot\nand prepared fresh _h\u00e9we_ and sweetened bread, \u201cfor _maybe_,\u201d she still\nthought, \u201cand then I will have it ready for him.\u201d\n\nNow, alas! you do not know that this good and beautiful maiden had a\nsister, alas!--a sister as beautiful as herself, but bad and\ndouble-hearted; and you know when people have double hearts they are\nwizards or witches, and have double tongues and paired thoughts--such a\nsister elder had the maiden of M\u00e1tsaki, alas!\n\nWhen the sun had climbed almost to the middle of the sky, the maiden,\nstill doubtful, looked down once more. He was there, and was working\namong the last hills of corn.\n\n\u201cAh, truly indeed he loves me,\u201d she thought, and she hastened to put on\nher necklaces and bracelets of shells, her earrings as long as your\nfingers--of turquoises,--and her fine cotton mantles with borders of\nstitched butterflies of summerland, and flowers of the autumn. Then she\ntook a new bowl from the stick-rack in the corner, and a large\nmany-colored tray that she had woven herself, and she filled the one\nwith meat broth, and the other with the _h\u00e9we_ and sweet-bread, and\nplacing the bowl of meat broth on her head, she took the tray of _h\u00e9we_\nin her hand, and started down toward the corn-field by the river-side to\nmeet her lover and to thank him.\n\nWitches are always jealous of the happiness and good fortune of others.\nSo was the sister of the beautiful maiden jealous when she saw the smile\non her _h\u00e1ni\u2019s_ face as she tripped toward the river.\n\n\u201c_Ho h\u00e1!_\u201d said the two-hearted sister. \u201c_T\u00e9m-ithlokwa thlokw\u00e1!\nWanan\u00ed!_\u201d which are words of defiance and hatred, used so long ago by\ndemons and wizards that no one knows nowadays what they mean except the\nlast one, which plainly says, \u201cJust wait a bit!\u201d and she hastened to\ndress herself, through her wicked knowledge, exactly as the beautiful\nmaiden was dressed. She even carried just such a bowl and tray; and as\nshe was beautiful, like her younger sister, nobody could have known the\none from the other, or the other from the one. Then she passed herself\nthrough a hoop of magic yucca, which made her seem not to be where she\nwas, for no one could see her unless she willed it.\n\nNow, just as the sun was resting in the middle of the sky, the young man\nfinished the field and ran down to the river to wash. Before he was\ndone, he saw the maiden coming down the trail with the bowl on her head\nand the tray in her hand; so he made haste, and ran back to dress\nhimself and to sit down to wait for her. As she approached, he said:\n\u201cThou comest, and may it be happily,\u201d--when lo! there appeared two\nmaidens exactly alike; so he quickly said, \u201cYe come.\u201d\n\n\u201c_E_,\u201d said the maidens, so nearly together that it sounded like one\nvoice; but when they both placed the same food before him, the poor\nyoung man looked from one to the other, and asked:\n\n\u201cAlas! of which am I to eat?\u201d\n\nThen it was that the maiden suddenly saw her sister, and became hot with\nanger, for she knew her wicked plans. \u201cAh, thou foolish sister, why\ndidst thou come?\u201d she said. But the other only replied:\n\n\u201cAh, thou foolish sister, why didst _thou_ come?\u201d\n\n\u201cGo back, for he is mine-to-be,\u201d said the maiden, beginning to cry.\n\n\u201cGo back, for he is mine-to-be,\u201d said the bad one, pretending to cry.\n\nAnd thus they quarrelled until they had given one another smarting words\nfour times, when they fell to fighting--as women always fight, by\npulling each other\u2019s hair, and scratching, and grappling until they\nrolled over each other in the sand.\n\nThe poor young man started forward to part them, but he knew not one\nfrom the other, so thinking that the bad one must know how to fight\nbetter than his beautiful maiden wife, he suddenly caught up his\nstone-weighted hoe, and furiously struck the one that was uppermost on\nthe head, again and again, until she let go her hold, and fell back,\nmurmuring and moaning: \u201cAlas! that thus it should be after all, after\nall!\u201d Then she forgot, and her eyes ceased to see.\n\nWhile yet the young man looked, lo! there was only the dying maiden\nbefore him; but in the air above circled an ugly black Crow, that\nlaughed \u201c_kawkaw, kawkaw, kawkaw!_\u201d and flew away to its cave in Thunder\nMountain.\n\nThen the young man knew. He cried aloud and beat his breast; then he ran\nto the river and brought water and bathed the blood away from the\nmaiden\u2019s temples; but alas! she only smiled and talked with her lips,\nthen grew still and cold.\n\nAlone, as the sun travelled toward the land of evening, wept the young\nman over the body of his beautiful wife. He knew naught but his sad\nthoughts. He took her in his arms, and placed his face close to hers,\nand again and again he called to her: \u201cAlas, alas! my beautiful wife; I\nloved thee, I love thee. Alas, alas! Ah, my beautiful wife, my beautiful\nwife!\u201d\n\nWhen the people returned from their fields in the evening, they missed\nthe beautiful maiden of M\u00e1tsaki; and they saw the young man, bending low\nand alone over something down in the lands of the priest-chief by the\nriver, and when they told the old father, he shook his head and said:\n\n\u201cIt is not well with my beautiful child; but as They (the gods) say,\nthus must all things be.\u201d Then he smiled--for the heart of a\npriest-chief never cries,--and told them to go and bring her to the\nplaza of M\u00e1tsaki and bury her before the House of the Sun; for he knew\nwhat had happened.\n\nSo the people did as their father had told them. They went down at\nsunset and took the beautiful maiden away, and wrapped her in mantles,\nand buried her near the House of the Sun.\n\nBut the poor young man knew naught but his sad thoughts. He followed\nthem; and when he had made her grave, he sat down by her earth bed and\nwould not leave her. No, not even when the sun set, but moaned and\ncalled to her: \u201cAlas, alas! my beautiful wife; I loved thee, I love\nthee; even though I knew not thee and killed thee. Alas! Ah, my\nbeautiful wife!\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201c_Shonetchi!_\u201d (\u201cThere is left of my story.\u201d) And what there is left, I\nwill tell you some other night.\n\n\n(_Told the Second Night_)\n\n\u201c_Sonahtchi!_\u201d\n\n\u201c_Sons shonetchi!_\u201d (\u201cThere is left of my story\u201d;) but I will tell you\nnot alone of the Maid of M\u00e1tsaki, because the young man killed her, for\nhe knew not his wife from the other. It is of the Red Feather, or the\nWife of M\u00e1tsaki that I will tell you this sitting.\n\nEven when the sun set, and the hills and houses grew black in the\nshadows, still the young man sat by the grave-side, his hands rested\nupon his knees and his face buried in them. And the people no longer\ntried to steal his sad thoughts from him; but, instead, left him, as one\nwhose mind errs, to wail out with weeping: \u201cAlas, alas! my beautiful\nwife; I loved thee, I love thee; even though I knew not thee and killed\nthee! Alas! Ah, my beautiful wife!\u201d\n\nBut when the moon set on the western hills, and the great snowdrift\nstreaked across the mid-sky, and the night was half gone, the sad\nwatcher saw a light in the grave-sands like the light of the embers that\ndie in the ashes. As he watched, his sad thoughts became bright\nthoughts, for the light grew and brightened till it burned the dark\ngrave-sands as sunlight the shadows. Lo! the bride lay beneath. She tore\noff her mantles and raised up in her grave-bed. Then she looked at the\neager lover so coldly and sadly that his bright thoughts all darkened,\nfor she mournfully told him: \u201cAlas! Ah, my lover, my husband knew not me\nfrom the other; loved me not, therefore killed me; even though I had\nhoped for love, loved me not, therefore killed me!\u201d\n\nAgain the young man buried his face in his hands and shook his head\nmournfully; and like one whose thoughts erred, again he wailed his\nlament: \u201cAlas, alas! my beautiful bride! I do love thee; I loved thee,\nbut I did not know thee and killed thee! Alas! Ah, my beautiful bride,\nmy beautiful bride!\u201d\n\nAt last, as the great star rose from the sky-land, the dead maiden spoke\nsoftly to the mourning lover, yet her voice was sad and strange: \u201cYoung\nman, mourn thou not, but go back to the home of thy fathers. Knowest\nthou not that I am another being? When the sky of the day-land grows\nyellow and the houses come out of the shadows, then will the light\nwhereby thou sawest me, fade away in the morn-light, as the blazes of\nlate councils pale their red in the sunlight.\u201d Then her voice grew\nsadder as she said: \u201cI am only a spirit; for remember, alas! ah, my\nlover, my husband knew not me from the other--loved me not, therefore\nkilled me; even though I had hoped for love, loved me not, therefore\nkilled me.\u201d\n\nBut the young man would not go until, in the gray of the morning, he saw\nnothing where the light had appeared but the dark sand of the grave as\nit had been. Then he arose and went away in sorrow. Nor would he all day\nspeak to men, but gazed only whither his feet stepped and shook his head\nsadly like one whose thoughts wandered. And when again the houses and\nhills grew black with the shadows, he sought anew the fresh grave and\nsat down by its side, bowed his head and still murmured: \u201cAlas, alas! my\nbeautiful wife, I loved thee, though I knew not thee, and killed thee.\nAlas! Ah, my beautiful wife!\u201d\n\nEven brighter glowed the light in the grave-sands when the night was\ndivided, and the maiden\u2019s spirit arose and sat in her grave-bed, but she\nonly reproached him and bade him go. \u201cFor,\u201d said she, \u201cI am only a\nspirit; remember, alas! ah, my lover, my husband knew not me from the\nother; loved me not, therefore killed me; even though I had hoped for\nlove, loved me not, therefore killed me!\u201d\n\nBut he left only in the morning, and again when the dark came, returned\nto the grave-side.\n\nWhen the light shone that night, the maiden, more beautiful than ever,\ncame out of the grave-bed and sat by her lover. Once more she urged him\nto return to his fathers; but when she saw that he would not, she said:\n\u201cThou hadst better, for I go a long journey. As light as the wind is, so\nlight will my feet be; as long as the day is, thou canst not my form\nsee. Know thou not that the spirits are seen but in darkness? for, alas!\nah, my lover, my husband knew not me from the other; loved me not,\ntherefore killed me; even though I had hoped for love, loved me not,\ntherefore killed me!\u201d\n\nThen the young man ceased bemoaning his beautiful bride. He looked at\nher sadly, and said: \u201cI do love thee, my beautiful wife! I do love thee,\nand whither thou goest let me therefore go with thee! I care not how\nlong is the journey, nor how hard is the way. If I can but see thee,\neven only at night time, then will I be happy and cease to bemoan thee.\nIt was because I loved thee and would have saved thee; but alas, my\nbeautiful wife! I knew not thee, therefore killed thee!\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas! Ah, my lover; and Ah! how I loved thee; but I am a spirit, and\nthou art unfinished. But if thou thus love me, go back when I leave thee\nand plume many prayer-sticks. Choose a light, downy feather and dye it\nwith ocher. Wrap up in thy blanket a lunch for four daylights; bring\nwith thee much prayer-meal; come to me at midnight and sit by my\ngrave-side, and when in the eastward the day-land is lighting, tie over\nmy forehead the reddened light feather, and when with the morning I fade\nfrom thy vision, follow only the feather until it is evening, and then\nthou shalt see me and sit down beside me.\u201d\n\nSo at sunrise the young man went away and gathered feathers of the\nsummer birds, and cut many prayer-sticks, whereon he bound them with\ncotton, as gifts to the Fathers. Then he found a beautiful downy feather\nplucked from the eagle, and dyed it red with ocher, and tied to it a\nstring of cotton wherewith to fasten it over the forehead of the spirit\nmaiden. When night came, he took meal made from parched corn and burnt\nsweet-bread, and once more went down to the plaza and sat by the\ngrave-side.\n\nWhen midnight came and the light glowed forth through the grave-sands,\nlo! the maiden-spirit came out and stood by his side. She seemed no\nlonger sad, but happy, like one going home after long absence. Nor was\nthe young man sad or single-thoughted like one whose mind errs; so they\nsat together and talked of their journey till the day-land grew yellow\nand the black shadows gray, and the houses and hills came out of the\ndarkness.\n\n\u201cOnce more would I tell thee to go back,\u201d said the maiden\u2019s spirit to\nthe young man; \u201cbut I know why thou goest with me, and it is well. Only\nwatch me when the day comes, and thou wilt see me no more; but look\nwhither the plume goeth, and follow, for thou knowest that thou must tie\nit to the hair above my forehead.\u201d\n\nThen the young man took the bright red plume out from among the feathers\nof sacrifice, and gently tied it above the maiden-spirit\u2019s forehead.\n\nAs the light waved up from behind the great mountain the red glow faded\nout from the grave-sands and the youth looked in vain for the spirit of\nthe maiden; but before him, at the height of one\u2019s hands when standing,\nwaved the light downy feather in the wind of the morning. Then the\nplume, not the wife, rose before him, like the plumes on the head of a\ndancer, and moved through the streets that led westward, and down\nthrough the fields to the river. And out through the streets that led\nwestward, and down on the trail by the river, and on over the plains\nalways toward the land of evening, the young man followed close the red\nfeather; but at last he began to grow weary, for the plume glided\nswiftly before him, until at last it left him far behind, and even now\nand then lost him entirely. Then, as he hastened on, he called in\nanguish:\n\n\u201cMy beautiful bride! My beautiful bride! Oh, where art thou?\u201d\n\nBut the plume, not the wife, stopped and waited. And thus the plume and\nthe young man journeyed until, toward evening, they came to the forests\nof sweet-smelling pi\u00f1ons and cedars. As the night hid the hills in the\nshadows, alas! the plume disappeared, but the young man pressed onward,\nfor he knew that the plume still journeyed westward. Yet at times he was\nso weary that he almost lost the strength of his thoughts; for he ran\ninto trees by the trail-side and stumbled over dry roots and branches.\nSo again and again he would call out in anguish: \u201cMy beautiful wife! My\nbeautiful bride! Oh, where art thou?\u201d\n\nAt last, when the night was divided, to his joy he saw, far away on the\nhill-top, a light that was red and grew brighter like the light of a\ncamp-fire\u2019s red embers when fanned by the wind of the night-time. And\nlike a star that is rising or setting, the red light sat still on the\nhill-top. So he ran hastily forward, until, as he neared the red light,\nlo! there sat the spirit of the beautiful maiden; and as he neared her,\nshe said:\n\n\u201cComest thou?\u201d and \u201cHow hast thou come to the evening?\u201d\n\nAs she spoke she smiled, and motioned him to sit down beside her. He was\nso weary that he slept while he talked to her; but, remember, she was a\nspirit, therefore she slept not.\n\nJust as the morning star came up from the day-land, the maiden rose to\njourney on, and the young man, awaking, followed her. But as the hills\ncame out of the shadows, the form of the maiden before him grew fainter\nand fainter, until it faded entirely, and only the red plume floated\nbefore him, like the plume on the head of a dancer. Far ahead and fast\nfloated the plume, until it entered a plain of lava filled with sharp\ncrags; yet still it went on, for the maiden\u2019s spirit moved over the\nbarriers as lightly as the down of dead flowers in autumn. But alas! the\nyoung man had to seek his way, and the plume again left him far behind,\nuntil he was forced to cry out: \u201cAh, my beautiful bride, do wait for me,\nfor I love thee, and will not turn from thee!\u201d Then the plume stopped on\nthe other side of the crags and waited until the poor young man came\nnearer, his feet and legs cut and bleeding, and his wind almost out.\nThen the trail was more even, and led through wide plains; but even thus\nthe young man could scarce keep the red plume in sight. But at night the\nmaiden awaited him in a sheltered place, and they rested together\nbeneath the cedars until daylight. Then again she faded out in the\ndaylight, and the red plume led the way.\n\nFor a long time the trail was pleasant, but toward evening they came to\na wide bed of cactus, and the plume passed over as swiftly as ever, but\nthe young man\u2019s moccasins were soon torn and his feet and legs cruelly\nlacerated with the cactus spines; yet still he pursued the red plume\nuntil the pain seemed to sting his whole body, and he gasped and wailed:\n\u201cAh, my beautiful wife, wait for me; do wait, for I love thee and will\nnot leave thee!\u201d Then the plume stopped beyond the plain of cactus and\nwaited until he had passed through, but not longer, for ere he had\nplucked all the needles of the cactus from his bleeding feet, it floated\non, and he lifted himself up and followed until at evening the maiden\nagain waited and bade him \u201cSit down and rest.\u201d\n\nThat night she seemed to pity him, and once more spoke to him: \u201c_Yo \u00e1!_\nMy lover, my husband, turn back, oh, turn back! for the way is long and\nuntrodden, and thy heart is but weak and is mortal. I go to the Council\nof Dead Ones, and how can the living there enter?\u201d\n\nBut the youth only wept, and begged that she let him go with her. \u201cFor,\nah,\u201d said he, \u201cmy beautiful wife, my beautiful bride, I love thee and\ncannot turn from thee!\u201d\n\nAnd she smiled only and shook her head sadly as she replied: \u201c_Yo \u00e1!_ It\nshall be as thou willest. It may be thy heart will not wither, for\ntomorrow is one more day onward, and then down the trail to the waters\nwherein stands the ladder of others, shall I lead thee to wait me\nforever.\u201d\n\nAt mid-sun on the day after, the plume led the way straight to a deep\nca\u00f1on, the walls of which were so steep that no man could pass them\nalive. For a moment the red plume paused above the chasm, and the youth\npressed on and stretched his hand forth to detain it; but ere he had\ngained the spot, it floated on straight over the dark ca\u00f1on, as though\nno ravine had been there at all; for to spirits the trails that once\nhave been, even though the waters have worn them away, still are.\n\nWildly the young man rushed up and down the steep brink, and\ndespairingly he called across to the plume: \u201cAlas! ah, my beautiful\nwife! Wait, only wait for me, for I love thee and cannot turn from\nthee!\u201d Then, like one whose thoughts wandered, he threw himself over the\nbrink and hung by his hands as if to drop, when a jolly little striped\nSquirrel, who was playing at the bottom of the ca\u00f1on, happened to see\nhim, and called out: \u201c_Tsithl! Tsithl!_\u201d and much more, which meant \u201c_Ah\nhai! Wanan\u00ed!_\u201d \u201cYou crazy fool of a being! You have not the wings of a\nfalcon, nor the hands of a Squirrel, nor the feet of a spirit, and if\nyou drop you will be broken to pieces and the moles will eat up the\nfragments! Wait! Hold hard, and I will help you, for, though I am but a\nSquirrel, I know how to think!\u201d\n\nWhereupon the little chit ran chattering away and called his mate out of\ntheir house in a rock-nook: \u201cWife! Wife! Come quickly; run to our corn\nroom and bring me a hemlock, and hurry! hurry! Ask me no questions; for\na crazy fool of a man over here will break himself to pieces if we don\u2019t\nquickly make him a ladder.\u201d\n\nSo the little wife flirted her brush in his face and skipped over the\nrocks to their store-house, where she chose a fat hemlock and hurried to\nher husband who was digging a hole in the sand underneath where the\nyoung man was hanging. Then they spat on the seed, and buried it in the\nhole, and began to dance round it and sing,--\n\n \u201c_Ki\u00e4thl\u00e4 tsilu,\n Silokwe, silokwe, silokwe;\n Ki\u2032ai silu silu,\n Tsithl! Tsithl!_\u201d\n\nWhich meant, as far as any one can tell now (for it was a long time ago,\nand partly squirrel talk),\n\n \u201cHemlock of the\n Tall kind, tall kind, tall kind,\n Sprout up hemlock, hemlock,\n Chit! Chit!\u201d\n\nAnd every time they danced around and sang the song through, the ground\nmoved, until the fourth time they said \u201c_Tsithl! Tsithl!_\u201d the tree\nsprouted forth and kept growing until the little Squirrel could jump\ninto it, and by grabbing the topmost bough and bracing himself against\nthe branches below, could stretch and pull it, so that in a short time\nhe made it grow as high as the young man\u2019s feet, and he had all he could\ndo to keep the poor youth from jumping right into it before it was\nstrong enough to hold him. Presently he said \u201c_Tsithl! Tsithl!_\u201d and\nwhisked away before the young man had time to thank him. Then the sad\nlover climbed down and quickly gained the other side, which was not so\nsteep; before he could rest from his climb, however, the plume floated\non, and he had to get up and follow it.\n\nJust as the sun went into the west, the plume hastened down into a\nvalley between the mountains, where lay a beautiful lake; and around the\nborders of the lake a very ugly old man and woman, who were always\nwalking back and forth across the trails, came forward and laughed\nloudly and greeted the beautiful maiden pleasantly. Then they told her\nto enter; and she fearlessly walked into the water, and a ladder of\nflags came up out of the middle of the lake to receive her, down which\nshe stepped without stopping until she passed under the waters. For a\nlittle--and then all was over--a bright light shone out of the water,\nand the sound of many glad voices and soft merry music came also from\nbeneath it; then the stars of the sky and the stars of the waters looked\nthe same at each other as they had done before.\n\n\u201cAlas!\u201d cried the young man as he ran to the lake-side. \u201cAh, my\nbeautiful wife, my beautiful wife, only wait, only wait, that I may go\nwith thee!\u201d But only the smooth waters and the old man and woman were\nbefore him; nor did the ladder come out or the old ones greet him. So he\nsat down on the lake-side wringing his hands and weeping, and ever his\nmind wandered back to his old lament: \u201cAlas! alas! my beautiful bride,\nmy beautiful wife, I love thee; I loved thee, but I knew not thee and\nkilled thee!\u201d\n\nToward the middle of the night once more he heard strange, happy voices.\nThe doorway to the Land of Spirits opened, and the light shot up through\nthe dark green waters from many windows, like sparks from a chimney on a\ndark, windless night. Then the ladder again ascended, and he saw the\nforms of the dead pass out and in, and heard the sounds of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_,\nas it danced for the gods. The comers and goers were bright and\nbeautiful, but their garments were snow-white cotton, stitched with\nmany-colored threads, and their necklaces and bracelets were of dazzling\nwhite shells and turquoises unnumbered. Once he ventured to gain the\nbright entrance, but the water grew deep and chilled him till he\ntrembled with fear and cold. Yet he looked in at the entrances, and lo!\nas he gazed he caught sight of his beautiful bride all covered with\ngarments and bright things. And there in the midst of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_ she sat\nat the head of the dancers. She seemed happy and smiled as she watched,\nand youths as bright and as happy came around her, and she seemed to\nforget her lone lover.\n\nThen with a cry of despair and anguish he crawled to the lake-shore and\nburied his face in the sands and rank grasses. Suddenly he heard a low\nscreech, and then a hoarse voice seemed to call him. He looked, and a\ngreat Owl flew over him, saying: \u201c_Muha\u00ed! Hu hu! Hu hu!_\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat wilt thou?\u201d he cried, in vexed anguish.\n\nThen the Owl flew closer, and, lighting, asked: \u201cWhy weepest thou, my\nchild?\u201d\n\nHe turned and looked at the Owl and told it part of his trouble, when\nthe Owl suddenly twisted its head quite around--as owls do--to see if\nanyone were near; then came closer and said: \u201cI know all about it, young\nman. Come with me to my house in the mountain, and if thou wilt but\nfollow my counsel, all will yet be well.\u201d Then the Owl led the way to a\ncave far above and bade him step in. As he placed his foot inside the\nopening, behold! it widened into a bright room, and many Owl-men and\nOwl-women around greeted him happily, and bade him sit down and eat.\n\nThe old Owl who had brought him, changed himself in a twinkling, as he\nentered the room, and hung his owl-coat on an antler. Then he went away,\nbut presently returned, bringing a little bag of medicine. \u201cBefore I\ngive thee this, let me tell thee what to do, and what thou must\npromise,\u201d said he of the owl-coat.\n\nThe young man eagerly reached forth his hand for the magic medicine.\n\n\u201cFool!\u201d cried the being; \u201cwere it not well, for that would I not help\nthee. Thou art too eager, and I will not trust thee with my medicine of\nsleep. Thou shalt sleep here, and when thou awakest thou shalt find the\nmorning star in the sky, and thy dead wife before thee on the trail\ntoward the Middle Ant Hill. With the rising sun she will wake and smile\non thee. Be not foolish, but journey preciously with her, and not until\nye reach the home of thy fathers shalt thou approach her or kiss her;\nfor if thou doest this, all will be as nothing again. But if thou doest\nas I counsel thee, all will be well, and happily may ye live one with\nthe other.\u201d\n\nHe ceased, and, taking a tiny pinch of the medicine, blew it in the face\nof the youth. Instantly the young man sank with sleep where he had been\nsitting, and the beings, putting on their owl-coats, flew away with him\nunder some trees by the trail that led to M\u00e1tsaki and the Ant Hill of\nthe Middle.\n\nThen they flew over the lake, and threw the medicine of sleep in at the\nwindows, and taking the plumed prayer-sticks which the young man had\nbrought with him, they chose some red plumes for themselves, and with\nthe others entered the home of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_. Softly they flew over the\nsleeping fathers and their children (the gods of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_ and the\nspirits) and, laying the prayer-plumes before the great altar, caught up\nthe beautiful maiden and bore her over the waters and woodlands to where\nthe young man was still sleeping. Then they hooted and flew off to their\nmountain.\n\nAs the great star came out of the day-land, the young man awoke, and\nlo! there before him lay his own beautiful wife. Then he turned his face\naway that he might not be tempted, and waited with joy and longing for\nthe coming out of the sun. When at last the sun came out, with the first\nray that brightened the beautiful maiden\u2019s face, she opened her eyes and\ngazed wildly around at first, but seeing her lonely lover, smiled, and\nsaid: \u201cTruly, thou lovest me!\u201d\n\nThen they arose and journeyed apart toward the home of their fathers,\nand the young man forgot not the counsel of the Owl, but journeyed\nwisely, till on the fourth day they came in sight of the Mountain of\nThunder and saw the river that flows by Salt City.\n\nAs they began to go down into the valley, the maiden stopped and said:\n\u201c_Hahu\u00e1_, I am weary, for the journey is long and the day is warm.\u201d Then\nshe sat down in the shadow of a cedar and said: \u201cWatch, my husband,\nwhile I sleep a little; only a little, and then we will journey together\nagain.\u201d And he said: \u201cBe it well.\u201d\n\nThen she lay down and seemed to sleep. She smiled and looked so\nbeautiful to the longing lover that he softly rose and crept close to\nher. Then, alas! he laid his hand upon her and kissed her.\n\nQuickly the beautiful maiden started. Her face was all covered with\nsadness, and she said, hastily and angrily: \u201cAh, thou shameless fool! I\nnow know! Thou lovest me not! How vain that I should have hoped for thy\nlove!\u201d\n\nWith shame, indeed, and sorrow, he bent his head low and covered his\nface with his hands. Then he started to speak, when an Owl flew up and\nhooted mournfully at him from a tree-top. Then the Owl winged her way to\nthe westward, and ever after the young man\u2019s mind wandered.\n\nAlas! alas! Thus it was in the days of the ancients. Maybe had the young\nman not kissed her yonder toward the Lake of the Dead, we would never\nhave journeyed nor ever have mourned for others lost. But then it is\nwell! If men and women had never died, then the world long ago had\noverflown with children, starvation, and warring.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {A young man and young woman}]\n\n\n\n\nTHE YOUTH AND HIS EAGLE\n\n\nIn forgotten times, in the days of our ancients, at the Middle Place, or\nwhat is now Sh\u00edwina (Zu\u00f1i), there lived a youth who was well grown, or\nperfect in manhood. He had a pet Eagle which he kept in a cage down on\nthe roof of the first terrace of the house of his family. He loved this\nEagle so dearly that he could not endure to be separated from it; not\nonly this, but he spent nearly all his time in caring for and fondling\nhis pet. Morning, noon, and evening, yea, and even between those times,\nyou would see him going down to the eagle-cage with meat and other kinds\nof delicate food. Day after day there you would find him sitting beside\nthe Eagle, petting it and making affectionate speeches, to all of which\ntreatment the bird responded with a most satisfied air, and seemed\nequally fond of his owner.\n\n [Illustration: THE YOUTH AND HIS EAGLE\n Photo by Hillers]\n\nWhenever a storm came the youth would hasten out of the house, as though\nthe safety of the crops depended upon it, to protect the Eagle. So,\nwinter and summer, no other care occupied his attention. Corn-field and\nmelon-garden was this bird to this youth; so much so that his brothers,\nelder and younger, and his male relatives generally, looked down upon\nhim as negligent of all manly duties, and wasteful of their substance,\nwhich he helped not to earn in his excessive care of the bird.\nNaturally, therefore, they looked with aversion upon the Eagle; and\none evening, after a hard day\u2019s work, after oft-repeated remonstrances\nwith the youth for not joining in their labors, they returned home tired\nand out of humor, and, climbing the ladder of the lower terrace, passed\nthe great cage on their way into the upper house. They stopped a moment\nbefore entering, and one of the eldest of the party exclaimed: \u201cWe have\nremonstrated in vain with the younger brother; we have represented his\nduties to him in every possible light, yet without effect. What remains\nto be done? What plans can we devise to alienate him from this miserable\nEagle?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not kill the wretched bird?\u201d asked one of them. \u201cThat, I should\nsay, would be the most simple means of curing him of his infatuation.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is an excellent plan,\u201d exclaimed all of the brothers as they went\non into the house; \u201cwe must adopt it.\u201d\n\nThe Eagle, apparently so unconscious, heard all this, and pondered over\nit. Presently came the youth with meat and other delicate food for his\nbeloved bird, and, opening the wicket of the gate, placed it within and\nbade the Eagle eat. But the bird looked at him and at the food with no\napparent interest, and, lowering its head on its breast, sat moody and\nsilent.\n\n\u201cAre you ill, my beloved Eagle?\u201d asked the youth, \u201cor why is it that you\ndo not eat?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not care to eat,\u201d said the Eagle, speaking for the first time. \u201cI\nam oppressed with much anxiety.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo eat, my beloved Eagle,\u201d said the youth. \u201cWhy should you be sad?\nHave I neglected you?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, indeed, you have not,\u201d said the Eagle. \u201cFor this reason I love you\nas you love me; for this reason I prize and cherish you as you cherish\nme; and yet it is for this very reason that I am sad. Look you! Your\nbrothers and relatives have often remonstrated with you for your neglect\nof their fields and your care for me. They have often been angered with\nyou for not bearing your part in the duties of the household. Therefore\nit is that they look with reproach upon you and with aversion upon me,\nso much so that they have at last determined to destroy me in order to\ndo away with your affection for me and to withdraw your attention. For\nthis reason I am sad,--not that they can harm me, for I need but spread\nmy wings when the wicket is opened, and what can they do? But I would\nnot part from you, for I love you. I would not that you should part with\nme, for you love me. Therefore am I sad, for I must go tomorrow to my\nhome in the skies,\u201d said the Eagle, again relapsing into moody silence.\n\n\u201cOh, my beloved bird! my own dear Eagle, how could I live without you?\nHow could I remain behind when you went forward, below when you went\nupward?\u201d exclaimed the youth, already beginning to weep. \u201cNo! Go, go, if\nit need be, alas! but let me go with you,\u201d said the youth.\n\n\u201cMy friend! my poor, poor youth!\u201d said the Eagle, \u201cyou cannot go with\nme. You have not wings to fly, nor have you knowledge to guide your\ncourse through the high skies into other worlds that you know not of.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet me go with you,\u201d cried the youth, falling on his knees by the side\nof the cage. \u201cI will comfort you, I will care for you, even as I have\ndone here; but live without you I cannot!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, my youth,\u201d said the Eagle, \u201cI would that you could go with me, but\nthe end would not be well. You know not how little you love me that you\nwish to do this thing. Think for a moment! The foods that my people eat\nare not the foods of your people; they are not ripened by fire for our\nconsumption, but whatever we capture abroad on our measureless hunts we\ndevour as it is, asking no fire to render it palatable or wholesome. You\ncould not exist thus.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy Eagle! my Eagle!\u201d cried the youth. \u201cIf I were to remain behind when\nyou went forward, or below when you went upward, food would be as\nnothing to me; and were it not better that I should eat raw food, or no\nfood, than that I should stay here, excessively and sadly thinking of\nyou, and thus never eat at all, even of the food of my own people? No,\nlet me go with you!\u201d\n\n\u201cOnce more I implore you, my youth,\u201d said the Eagle, \u201cnot to go with me,\nfor to your own undoing and to my sadness will such a journey be\nundertaken.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet me go, let me go! Only let me go!\u201d implored the youth.\n\n\u201cIt is said,\u201d replied the Eagle calmly. \u201cEven as you wish, so be it.\nNow go unto your own home for the last time; gather large quantities of\nsustaining food, as for a long journey. Place this food in strong\npouches, and make them all into a package which you can sling upon your\nshoulder or back. Then come to me tomorrow morning, after the people\nhave begun to descend to their fields.\u201d\n\nThe youth bade good-night to his Eagle and went into the house. He took\nof parched flour a great quantity, of dried and pulverized wafer-bread a\nlarge bag, and of other foods, such as hunters carry and on which they\nsustain themselves long, he took a good supply, and made them all into a\nfirm package. Then, with high hopes and much thought of the morrow, he\nlaid himself to rest. He slept late into the morning, and it was not\nuntil his brothers had departed for their fields of corn that he arose;\nand, eating a hasty breakfast, slung the package of foods over his\nshoulders and descended to the cage of the Eagle. The great bird was\nwaiting for him. With a smile in its eyes it came forth when he opened\nthe wicket, and, settling down on the ground, spread out its wings and\nbade the youth mount.\n\n\u201cSit on my back, for it is strong, oh youth! Grasp the base of my wings,\nand rest your feet above my thighs, that you may not fall off. Are you\nready? Ah, well. And have you all needful things in the way of food?\nGood. Let us start on our journey.\u201d\n\nSaying this, the Eagle rose slowly, circling wider and wider as it went\nup, and higher and higher, until it had risen far above the town, going\nslowly. Presently it said: \u201cMy youth, I will sing a farewell song to\nyour people for you and for me, that they may know of our final\ndeparture.\u201d Then, as with great sweeps of its wings it circled round and\nround, going higher and higher, it sang this song:\n\n \u201cHuli-i-i--Huli-i-i--\n Pa shish lakwa-a-a--\n U-u-u-u--\n U-u-u-u-a!\n\n Pa shish lakwa-a-a--\n\n U-u-u-u--\n U-u-u-u-a!\u201d\n\nAs the song floated down from on high, \u201cSave us! By our eyes!\u201d exclaimed\nthe people. \u201cThe Eagle and the youth! They are escaping; they are\nleaving us!\u201d\n\nAnd so the word went from mouth to mouth, and from ear to ear, until the\nwhole town was gazing at the Eagle and the youth, and the song died away\nin the distance, and the Eagle became smaller and smaller, winding its\nway upward until it was a mere speck, and finally vanished in the very\nzenith.\n\nThe people shook their heads and resumed their work, but the Eagle and\nthe youth went on until at last they came to the great opening in the\nzenith of the sky. In passing upward by its endless cliffs they came out\non the other side into the sky-world; and still upward soared the\nEagle, until it alighted with its beloved burden on the summit of the\nMountain of Turquoises, so blue that the light shining on it paints the\nsky blue.\n\n\u201c_Huhua!_\u201d said the Eagle, with the weariness that comes at the end of a\nlong journey. \u201cWe have reached our journey\u2019s end for a time. Let us rest\nourselves on this mountain height of my beloved world.\u201d\n\nThe youth descended and sat by the Eagle\u2019s side, and the Eagle, raising\nits wings until the tips touched above, lowered its head, and catching\nhold of its crown, shook it from side to side, and then drew upon it,\nand then gradually the eagle-coat parted, and while the youth looked and\nwondered in love and joy, a beautiful maiden was uncovered before him,\nin garments of dazzling whiteness, softness, and beauty. No more\nbeautiful maiden could be conceived than this one,--bright of face,\nclear and clean, with eyes so dark and large and deep, and yet sharp,\nthat it was bewildering to look into them. Such eyes have never been\nseen in this world.\n\n\u201cCome with me, my youth--you who have loved me so well,\u201d said she,\napproaching him and reaching out her hand. \u201cLet us wander for a while on\nthis mountain side and seek the home of my people.\u201d\n\nThey descended the mountain and wound round its foot until, looking up\nin the clear light of the sky-world, they beheld a city such as no man\nhas ever seen. Lofty were its walls,--smooth, gleaming, clean, and\nwhite; no ladders, no smoke, no filth in any part whatsoever.\n\n\u201cYonder is the home of my people,\u201d said the maiden, and resuming her\neagle-dress she took the youth on her back again, and, circling upward,\nhovered for a moment over this home of the Eagles, then, through one of\nthe wide entrances which were in the roof, slowly descended. No ladders\nwere there, inside or outside; no need of them with a people winged like\nthe Eagles, for a people they were, like ourselves--more a people,\nindeed, than we, for in one guise or the other they might appear at\nwill.\n\nNo sooner had the Eagle-maiden and the youth entered this great building\nthan those who were assembled there greeted them with welcome assurances\nof joy at their coming. \u201cSit ye down and rest,\u201d said they.\n\nThe youth looked around. The great room into which they had descended\nwas high and broad and long, and lighted from many windows in its roof\nand upon its walls, which were beautifully white and clean and finished,\nas no walls in this world are, with many devices pleasing to the eye.\nStarting out from these walls were many hooks or pegs, suspended from\nwhich were the dresses of the Eagles who lived there, the forms of which\nwe know.\n\n\u201cYea, sit ye down and rest and be happy,\u201d said an old man. Wonderfully\nfine he was as he arose and approached the couple and said, spreading\nabroad his wings: \u201cBe ye always one to the other wife and husband. Shall\nit be so?\u201d\n\nAnd they both, smiling, said \u201cYes.\u201d And so the youth married the\nEagle-maiden.\n\nAfter a few days of rest they found him an eagle-coat, fine as the\nfinest, with broad, strong wings, and beautiful plumage, and they taught\nhim how to conform himself to it and it to himself. And as Eagles would\nteach a young Eagle here in this world of ours, so they taught the youth\ngradually to fly. At first they would bid him poise himself in his\neagle-form on the floor of their great room, and, laying all over it\nsoft things, bid him open his wings and leap into the air. Anxious to\nlearn, he would spread his great wings and with a powerful effort send\nhimself high up toward the ceiling; but untaught to sustain himself\nthere, would fall with many a flap and tumble to the floor. Again and\nagain this was tried, but after a while he learned to sustain and guide\nhimself almost wholly round the room without once touching anything; and\nhis wife in her eagle-form would fly around him, watching and helping,\nand whenever his flight wavered would fan a strong wind up against his\nwings with her own that he might not falter, until he had at last\nlearned wholly to support himself in the air. Then she bade him one day\ncome out with her to the roof of the house, and from there they sailed\naway, away, and away over the great valleys and plains below, ever\nkeeping to the northward and eastward; and whenever he faltered in his\nflight she bore his wings up with her own wings, teaching him how, this\nway and that, until, when they returned to the roof, those who watched\nthem said: \u201cNow, indeed, is he learned in the ways of our people. How\ngood it is that this is so!\u201d And they were very happy, the youth and\nthe Eagle-maiden and their people.\n\nOne day the maiden took the youth out again into the surrounding\ncountry, and as they flew along she said to him: \u201cYou may wonder that we\nnever fly toward the southward. Oh, my youth, my husband! never go\nyonder, for over that low range of mountains is a fearful world, where\nno mortal can venture. If you love me, oh, if you truly love me, never\nventure yonder!\u201d And he listened to her advice and promised that he\nwould not go there. Then they went home.\n\nOne day there was a grand hunt, and he was invited to join in it. Over\nthe wide world flew this band of Eagle hunters to far-away plains.\nWhatsoever they would hunt, behold! below them somewhere or other might\nthe game be seen, were it rabbit, mountain sheep, antelope, or deer, and\neach according to his wish captured the kind of game he would, the youth\nbringing home with the rest his quarry. Of all the game they captured he\ncould eat none, for in that great house of the Eagles, so beautiful, so\nperfect, no fire ever burned, no cooking was ever done. And after many\ndays the food which the youth brought with him was diminished so that\nhis wife took him out to a high mountain one day, and said: \u201cAs I have\ntold you before, the region beyond those low mountains is fearful and\ndeadly; but yonder in the east are other kinds of people than those whom\nyou should dread. Not far away is the home of the Pelicans and Storks,\nwho, as you know, eat food that has been cooked, even as your people\ndo. When you grow hungry, my husband, go to them, and as they are your\ngrandparents they will feed you and give you of their abundance of food,\nthat you may bring it here, and thus we shall do well and be happy.\u201d\n\nThe youth assented, and, guided part of the way by his faithful, loving\nwife, he went to the home of the Storks. No sooner had he appeared than\nthey greeted him with loud assurances of welcome and pleasure at his\ncoming, and bade him eat. And they set before him bean-bread,\nbean-stews, beans which were baked, as it were, and mushes of beans with\nmeat intermixed, which seemed as well cooked as the foods of our own\npeople here on this mortal earth. And the youth ate part of them, and\nwith many thanks returned to his home among the Eagles. And thus, as his\nwife had said before, it was all well, and they continued to live there\nhappily.[2]\n\n [2] This curious conception of the food of the storks and cranes\n and pelicans, for of such birds the folk-tale tells, is\n interesting. It is doubtless an attempt to explain what has been\n observed with relation to the pelicans and the storks\n especially: that they consume their food raw, and, as the Indian\n believes, cook it, as it were, in their own bodies, and then\n withdraw it, either for their young or for their final\n consumption. As this semi-digested food of such birds resembles\n very nearly the thick bean stews of the Zu\u00f1is, they have\n evidently taken from it the suggestion for the special kinds of\n food which were offered to the youth.\n\nBetween the villages of the Eagles and the Storks the youth lived; so\nthat by-and-by the Storks became almost as fond of him as were the\nEagles, addressing him as their beloved grandchild. And in consequence\nof this fondness, his old grandfather and grandmother among the Storks\nespecially called his attention to the fearful region lying beyond the\nrange of mountains to the south, and they implored him, as his wife had\ndone, not to go thither. \u201cFor the love of us, do not go there, oh,\ngrandchild!\u201d said they one day, when he was about to leave.\n\nHe seemed to agree with them, and spread his wings and flew away. But\nwhen he had gone a long distance, he turned southward, with this\nexclamation: \u201cWhy should I not see what this is? Who can harm me,\nfloating on these strong wings of mine? Who can harm an Eagle in the\nsky?\u201d So he flew over the edge of the mountains, and behold! rising up\non the plains beyond them was a great city, fine and perfect, with walls\nof stone built as are the towns of our dead ancients. And the smoke was\nwreathing forth from its chimneys, and in the hazy distance it seemed\nteeming with life at the moment when the youth saw it, which was at\nevening time.\n\nThe inhabitants of that city saw him and sent messages forth to the town\nof the Eagles that they would make a grand festival and dance, and\ninvited the Eagles to come with their friends to witness this dance. And\nwhen the youth returned to the home of his Eagle people, behold! already\nhad this message been delivered there, and his wife in sorrow was\nawaiting him at the doorway.\n\n\u201cAlas! alas! my youth! my husband!\u201d said she. \u201cAnd so, regarding more\nyour own curiosity than the love of your wife, you have been into that\nfearful country, and as might have been expected, you were observed. We\nare now invited to visit the city you saw and to witness a dance of the\ninhabitants thereof, which invitation we cannot refuse, and you must go\nwith us. It remains to be seen, oh my youth, whom I trusted, if your\nlove for me be so great that you may stand the test of this which you\nhave brought upon yourself, by heedlessness of my advice and that of\nyour grandparents, the Storks. Oh, my husband, I despair of you, and\nthus despairing, I implore you to heed me once more, and all may be well\nwith you even yet. Go with us tonight to the city you saw, the most\nfearful of all cities, for it is the city of the damned, and wonderful\nthings you will see; but do not laugh or even smile once. I will sit by\nyour side and look at you. Oh, think of me as I do of you, and thus\nthinking you will not smile. If you truly love me, and would remain with\nme always, and be happy as I would be happy, do this one thing for me.\u201d\n\nThe youth promised over and over, and when night came he went with the\nEagle people to that city. A beautiful place it was, large and fine,\nwith high walls of stone and many a little window out of which the red\nfire-light was shining. The smoke was going up from its chimneys, the\nsparks winding up through it, and, with beacon fires burning on the\nroofs, it was a happy, bustling scene that met the gaze of the youth as\nhe approached the town. There were sounds and cries of life everywhere.\nLights shone and merriment echoed from every street and room, and they\nwere ushered into a great dance hall, or _kiwitsin_, where the audience\nwas already assembled.\n\nBy-and-by the sounds of the coming dance were heard, and all was\nexpectation. The fires blazed up and the lights shone all round the\nroom, making it as bright as day. In came the dancers, maidens mostly,\nbeautiful, and clad in the richest of ancient garments; their eyes were\nbright, their hair black and soft, their faces gleaming with merriment\nand pleasure. And they came joking down the ladders into the room before\nthe place where the youth sat, and as they danced down the middle of the\nfloor they cried out in shrill, yet not unpleasant voices, as they\njostled each other, playing grotesque pranks and assuming the most\nlaughter-stirring attitudes:\n\n\u201c_Hapa! hapa! is! is! is!_\u201d (\u201cDead! dead! this! this! this!\u201d)--pointing\nat one another, and repeating this baleful expression, although so\nbeautiful, and full of life and joy and merriment.\n\nNow, the youth looked at them all through this long dance, and though he\nthought it strange that they should exclaim thus one to another, so\nlively and pretty and jolly they were, he was nevertheless filled with\namusement at their strange antics and wordless jokes. Still he never\nsmiled.\n\nThen they filed in again and there were more dancers, merrier than\nbefore, and among them were two or three girls of surpassing beauty even\nin that throng of lovely women, and one of them looked in a coquettish\nmanner constantly toward the youth, directing all her smiles and\nmerriment to him as she pointed round to her companions, exclaiming:\n\u201c_Hapa! hapa! is! is! is!_\u201d\n\nThe youth grew forgetful of everything else as he leaned forward,\nabsorbed in watching this girl with her bright eyes and merry smiles.\nWhen, finally, in a more amusing manner than before, she jostled some\nmerry dancer, he laughed outright and the girl ran forward toward him,\nwith two others following, and reaching out, grasped his hands and\ndragged him into the dance. The Eagle-maiden lifted her wings and with a\ncry of woe flew away with her people. But ah, ah! the youth minded\nnothing, he was so wild with merriment, like the beautiful maidens by\nhis side, and up and down the great lighted hall he danced with them,\njoining in their uncouth postures and their exclamations, of which he\ndid not yet understand the true meaning--\u201c_Hapa! hapa! is! is! is!_\u201d\n\nBy-and-by the fire began to burn low, and the maidens said to him: \u201cCome\nand pass the night with us all here. Why go back to your home? Are we\nnot merry companions? Ha! ha! ha! ha! _Hapa! hapa! is! is! is!_\u201d They\nbegan to laugh and jostle one another again. Thus they led the youth,\nnot unwillingly on his part, away into a far-off room, large and fine\nlike the others, and there on soft blankets he lay himself down, and\nthese maidens gathered round him, one pillowing his head on her arm,\nanother smiling down into his face, another sitting by his side, and\nsoon he fell asleep. All became silent, and the youth slept on.\n\nIn the morning, when broad daylight had come, the youth opened his eyes\nand started. It seemed as though there were more light than there should\nbe in the house. He looked up, and the room which had been so fine and\nfinished the night before was tottering over his head; the winds\nshrieked through great crevices in the walls; the windows were broken\nand wide open; sand sifted through on the wind and eddied down into the\nold, barren room. The rafters, dried and warped with age, were bending\nand breaking, and pieces of the roof fell now and then when the wind\nblew more strongly. He raised himself, and clammy bones fell from around\nhim; and when he cast his eyes about him, there on the floor were strewn\nbones and skulls. Here and there a face half buried in the sand, with\neyes sunken and dried and patches of skin clinging to it, seemed to\nglare at him. Fingers and feet, as of mummies, were strewn about, and it\nwas as if the youth had entered a great cemetery, where the remains of\nthe dead of all ages were littered about. He lifted himself still\nfarther, and where the head of one maiden had lain or the arms of\nanother had entwined with his, bones were clinging to him. One by one he\npicked them off stealthily and laid them down, until at last he freed\nhimself, and, rising, cautiously stepped between the bones which were\nlying around, making no noise until he came to the broken-down doorway\nof the place. There, as he passed out, his foot tripped against a\nsplinter of bone which was embedded in the debris of the ruin, and as a\nsliver sings in the wind, so this sang out. The youth, startled and\nterrorized, sprang forth and ran for his life in the direction of the\nhome of the Storks. Shrieking, howling, and singing like a slivered\nstick in the wind, like creaking boughs in the forest, with groans and\nhowls and whistlings that seemed to freeze the youth as he ran, these\nbones and fragments of the dead arose and, like a flock of vampires,\npursued him noisily.\n\nHe ran and ran, and the great cloud of the dead were coming nearer and\nnearer and pressing round him, when he beheld one of his grandparents, a\nBadger, near its hole. The Badger, followed by others, was fast\napproaching him, having heard this fearful clamor, and cried out: \u201cOur\ngrandson! Let\u2019s save him!\u201d So they ran forward and, catching him up,\ncast him down into one of their holes. Then, turning toward the uncanny\ncrowd and bristling up, with sudden emotion and mighty effort they cast\noff that odor by which, as you know, they may defile the very winds.\n_Thlitchiii!_ it met the crowd of ghosts. _Thliwooo!_ the whole host of\nthem turned with wails and howls and gnashings of teeth back toward the\nCity of the Dead, whence they had come. And the Badgers ran into the\nhole where lay the youth, lifted him up, and scolded him most vigorously\nfor his folly.\n\nThen they said: \u201cSit up, you fool, for you are not yet saved! Hurry!\u201d\nsaid they, one to another. \u201cHeat water!\u201d And, the water being heated,\nnauseating herbs and other medicines were mingled with it, and the youth\nwas directed to drink of that. He drank, not once, but four times.\n_Ukch, usa!_--and after he had been thus treated the old Badgers asked\nhim if he felt relieved or well, and the youth said he was very well\ncompared with what he had been.\n\nThen they stood him up in their midst and said to him: \u201cYou fool and\nfaithless lout, why did you go and become enamored of Death, however\nbeautiful? It is only a wonder that with all our skill and power we have\nsaved you thus far. It will be a still greater wonder, O foolish one, if\nshe who loved you still loves you enough after this faithlessness to\nsave the life which you have forfeited. Who would dance and take joy in\nDeath? Go now to the home of your grandparents, the Storks, and there\nlive. Your plumage gone, your love given up, what remains? You can\nneither descend to your own people below without wings, nor can you live\nwith the people of the Eagles without love. Go, therefore, to your\ngrandparents!\u201d\n\nAnd the youth got up and dragged himself away to the home of the Storks;\nbut when he arrived there they looked at him with downcast faces and\nreproached him over and over, saying: \u201cThere is small possibility of\nyour regaining what you have forfeited,--the love and affection of your\nwife.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I will go to her and plead with her,\u201d said the youth. \u201cHow should I\nknow what I was doing?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe told you not to do it, and you heeded not our telling.\u201d\n\nSo the youth lagged away to the home of the Eagles, where, outside that\ngreat house with high walls, he lingered, moping and moaning. The Eagles\ncame and went, or they gathered and talked on the house-top, but no word\nof greeting did they offer him; and his wife, at last, with a shiver of\ndisgust, appeared above him and said: \u201cGo back! go back to your\ngrandparents. Their love you may not have forfeited; mine you have. Go\nback! for we never can receive you again amongst us. Oh, folly and\nfaithlessness, in you they have an example!\u201d\n\nSo the youth sadly returned to the home of the Storks. There he\nlingered, returning ever and anon to the home of the Eagles; but it was\nas though he were not there, until at last the elder Eagles, during one\nof his absences, implored the Eagle-maid to take the youth back to his\nown home.\n\n\u201cWould you ask me, his wife, who loved him, now to touch him who has\nbeen polluted by being enamored of Death?\u201d asked she.\n\nBut they implored, and she acquiesced. So, when the youth appeared again\nat the home of the Eagles, she had found an old, old Eagle dress, many\nof the feathers in it broken; ragged and disreputable it was, and the\nwing-feathers were so thin that the wind whistled through them.\nDescending with this, she bade him put it on, and when he had done so,\nshe said: \u201cCome with me now, according to the knowledge in which we have\ninstructed you.\u201d\n\nAnd they flew away to the summit of that blue mountain, and, after\nresting there, they began to descend into the sky which we see, and from\nthat downward and downward in very narrow circles.\n\nWhenever the youth, with his worn-out wings, faltered, the wife bore him\nup, until, growing weary in a moment of remembrance of his\nfaithlessness, she caught in her talons the Eagle dress which sustained\nhim and drew it off, bade him farewell forever, and sailed away out of\nsight in the sky. And the youth, with one gasp and shriek, tumbled over\nand over and over, fell into the very center of the town in which he had\nlived when he loved his Eagle, and utterly perished.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the times of the ancients; and for this reason by no\nmeans whatsoever may a mortal man, by any alliances under the sun, avoid\nDeath. But if one would live as long as possible, one should never, in\nany manner whatsoever, remembering this youth\u2019s experience, become\nenamored of Death.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Bird symbols}]\n\n\n\n\nTHE POOR TURKEY GIRL\n\n\nLong, long ago, our ancients had neither sheep nor horses nor cattle;\nyet they had domestic animals of various kinds--amongst them Turkeys.\n\nIn M\u00e1tsaki, or the Salt City, there dwelt at this time many very wealthy\nfamilies, who possessed large flocks of these birds, which it was their\ncustom to have their slaves or the poor people of the town herd in the\nplains round about Thunder Mountain, below which their town stood, and\non the mesas beyond.\n\nNow, in M\u00e1tsaki at this time there stood, away out near the border of\nthe town, a little tumble-down, single-room house, wherein there lived\nalone a very poor girl,--so poor that her clothes were patched and\ntattered and dirty, and her person, on account of long neglect and\nill-fare, shameful to look upon, though she herself was not ugly, but\nhad a winning face and bright eyes; that is, if the face had been more\noval and the eyes less oppressed with care. So poor was she that she\nherded Turkeys for a living; and little was given to her except the food\nshe subsisted on from day to day, and perhaps now and then a piece of\nold, worn-out clothing.\n\nLike the extremely poor everywhere and at all times, she was humble, and\nby her longing for kindness, which she never received, she was made kind\neven to the creatures that depended upon her, and lavished this\nkindness upon the Turkeys she drove to and from the plains every day.\nThus, the Turkeys, appreciating this, were very obedient. They loved\ntheir mistress so much that at her call they would unhesitatingly come,\nor at her behest go whithersoever and whensoever she wished.\n\nOne day this poor girl, driving her Turkeys down into the plains, passed\nnear Old Zu\u00f1i,--the Middle Ant Hill of the World, as our ancients have\ntaught us to call our home,--and as she went along, she heard the\nherald-priest proclaiming from the house-top that the Dance of the\nSacred Bird (which is a very blessed and welcome festival to our people,\nespecially to the youths and maidens who are permitted to join in the\ndance) would take place in four days.\n\nNow, this poor girl had never been permitted to join in or even to watch\nthe great festivities of our people or the people in the neighboring\ntowns, and naturally she longed very much to see this dance. But she put\naside her longing, because she reflected: \u201cIt is impossible that I\nshould watch, much less join in the Dance of the Sacred Bird, ugly and\nill-clad as I am.\u201d And thus musing to herself, and talking to her\nTurkeys, as was her custom, she drove them on, and at night returned\nthem to their cages round the edges and in the plazas of the town.\n\nEvery day after that, until the day named for the dance, this poor girl,\nas she drove her Turkeys out in the morning, saw the people busy in\ncleaning and preparing their garments, cooking delicacies, and otherwise\nmaking ready for the festival to which they had been duly invited by\nthe other villagers, and heard them talking and laughing merrily at the\nprospect of the coming holiday. So, as she went about with her Turkeys\nthrough the day, she would talk to them, though she never dreamed that\nthey understood a word of what she was saying.\n\nIt seems that they did understand even more than she said to them, for\non the fourth day, after the people of M\u00e1tsaki had all departed toward\nZu\u00f1i and the girl was wandering around the plains alone with her\nTurkeys, one of the big Gobblers strutted up to her, and making a fan of\nhis tail, and skirts, as it were, of his wings, blushed with pride and\npuffed with importance, stretched out his neck and said: \u201cMaiden mother,\nwe know what your thoughts are, and truly we pity you, and wish that,\nlike the other people of M\u00e1tsaki, you might enjoy this holiday in the\ntown below. We have said to ourselves at night, after you have placed us\nsafely and comfortably in our cages: \u2018Truly our maiden mother is as\nworthy to enjoy these things as any one in M\u00e1tsaki, or even Zu\u00f1i.\u2019 Now,\nlisten well, for I speak the speech of all the elders of my people: If\nyou will drive us in early this afternoon, when the dance is most gay\nand the people are most happy, we will help you to make yourself so\nhandsome and so prettily dressed that never a man, woman, or child\namongst all those who are assembled at the dance will know you; but\nrather, especially the young men, will wonder whence you came, and long\nto lay hold of your hand in the circle that forms round the altar to\ndance. Maiden mother, would you like to go to see this dance, and even\nto join in it, and be merry with the best of your people?\u201d\n\nThe poor girl was at first surprised. Then it seemed all so natural that\nthe Turkeys should talk to her as she did to them, that she sat down on\na little mound, and, leaning over, looked at them and said: \u201cMy beloved\nTurkeys, how glad I am that we may speak together! But why should you\ntell me of things that you full well know I so long to, but cannot by\nany possible means, do?\u201d\n\n\u201cTrust in us,\u201d said the old Gobbler, \u201cfor I speak the speech of my\npeople, and when we begin to call and call and gobble and gobble, and\nturn toward our home in M\u00e1tsaki, do you follow us, and we will show you\nwhat we can do for you. Only let me tell you one thing: No one knows how\nmuch happiness and good fortune may come to you if you but enjoy\ntemperately the pleasures we enable you to participate in. But if, in\nthe excess of your enjoyment, you should forget us, who are your\nfriends, yet so much depend upon you, then we will think: \u2018Behold, this\nour maiden mother, though so humble and poor, deserves, forsooth, her\nhard life, because, were she more prosperous, she would be unto others\nas others now are unto her.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cNever fear, O my Turkeys,\u201d cried the maiden,--only half trusting that\nthey could do so much for her, yet longing to try,--\u201cnever fear. In\neverything you direct me to do I will be obedient as you always have\nbeen to me.\u201d\n\nThe sun had scarce begun to decline, when the Turkeys of their own\naccord turned homeward, and the maiden followed them, light of heart.\nThey knew their places well, and immediately ran to them. When all had\nentered, even their bare-legged children, the old Gobbler called to the\nmaiden, saying: \u201cEnter our house.\u201d She therefore went in. \u201cNow, maiden,\nsit down,\u201d said he, \u201cand give to me and my companions, one by one, your\narticles of clothing. We will see if we cannot renew them.\u201d\n\nThe maiden obediently drew off the ragged old mantle that covered her\nshoulders and cast it on the ground before the speaker. He seized it in\nhis beak, and spread it out, and picked and picked at it; then he trod\nupon it, and lowering his wings, began to strut back and forth over it.\nThen taking it up in his beak, and continuing to strut, he puffed and\npuffed, and laid it down at the feet of the maiden, a beautiful white\nembroidered cotton mantle. Then another Gobbler came forth, and she gave\nhim another article of dress, and then another and another, until each\ngarment the maiden had worn was new and as beautiful as any possessed by\nher mistresses in M\u00e1tsaki.\n\nBefore the maiden donned all these garments, the Turkeys circled about\nher, singing and singing, and clucking and clucking, and brushing her\nwith their wings, until her person was as clean and her skin as smooth\nand bright as that of the fairest maiden of the wealthiest home in\nM\u00e1tsaki. Her hair was soft and wavy, instead of being an ugly, sun-burnt\nshock; her cheeks were full and dimpled, and her eyes dancing with\nsmiles,--for she now saw how true had been the words of the Turkeys.\n\nFinally, one old Turkey came forward and said: \u201cOnly the rich ornaments\nworn by those who have many possessions are lacking to thee, O maiden\nmother. Wait a moment. We have keen eyes, and have gathered many\nvaluable things,--as such things, being small, though precious, are apt\nto be lost from time to time by men and maidens.\u201d\n\nSpreading his wings, he trod round and round upon the ground, throwing\nhis head back, and laying his wattled beard on his neck; and, presently\nbeginning to cough, he produced in his beak a beautiful necklace;\nanother Turkey brought forth earrings, and so on, until all the proper\nornaments appeared, befitting a well-clad maiden of the olden days, and\nwere laid at the feet of the poor Turkey girl.\n\nWith these beautiful things she decorated herself, and, thanking the\nTurkeys over and over, she started to go, and they called out: \u201cO maiden\nmother, leave open the wicket, for who knows whether you will remember\nyour Turkeys or not when your fortunes are changed, and if you will not\ngrow ashamed that you have been the maiden mother of Turkeys? But we\nlove you, and would bring you to good fortune. Therefore, remember our\nwords of advice, and do not tarry too long.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will surely remember, O my Turkeys!\u201d answered the maiden.\n\nHastily she sped away down the river path toward Zu\u00f1i. When she arrived\nthere, she went in at the western side of the town and through one of\nthe long covered ways that lead into the dance court. When she came just\ninside of the court, behold, every one began to look at her, and many\nmurmurs ran through the crowd,--murmurs of astonishment at her beauty\nand the richness of her dress,--and the people were all asking one\nanother, \u201cWhence comes this beautiful maiden?\u201d\n\nNot long did she stand there neglected. The chiefs of the dance, all\ngorgeous in their holiday attire, hastily came to her, and, with\napologies for the incompleteness of their arrangements,--though these\narrangements were as complete as they possibly could be,--invited her to\njoin the youths and maidens dancing round the musicians and the altar in\nthe center of the plaza.\n\nWith a blush and a smile and a toss of her hair over her eyes, the\nmaiden stepped into the circle, and the finest youths among the dancers\nvied with one another for her hand. Her heart became light and her feet\nmerry, and the music sped her breath to rapid coming and going, and the\nwarmth swept over her face, and she danced and danced until the sun sank\nlow in the west.\n\nBut, alas! in the excess of her enjoyment, she thought not of her\nTurkeys, or, if she thought of them, she said to herself, \u201cHow is this,\nthat I should go away from the most precious consideration to my flock\nof gobbling Turkeys? I will stay a while longer, and just before the sun\nsets I will run back to them, that these people may not see who I am,\nand that I may have the joy of hearing them talk day after day and\nwonder who the girl was who joined in their dance.\u201d\n\nSo the time sped on, and another dance was called, and another, and\nnever a moment did the people let her rest; but they would have her in\nevery dance as they moved around the musicians and the altar in the\ncenter of the plaza.\n\nAt last the sun set, and the dance was well-nigh over, when, suddenly\nbreaking away, the girl ran out, and, being swift of foot,--more so than\nmost of the people of her village,--she sped up the river path before\nany one could follow the course she had taken.\n\nMeantime, as it grew late, the Turkeys began to wonder and wonder that\ntheir maiden mother did not return to them. At last a gray old Gobbler\nmournfully exclaimed, \u201cIt is as we might have expected. She has\nforgotten us; therefore is she not worthy of better things than those\nshe has been accustomed to. Let us go forth to the mountains and endure\nno more of this irksome captivity, inasmuch as we may no longer think\nour maiden mother as good and true as once we thought her.\u201d\n\nSo, calling and calling to one another in loud voices, they trooped out\nof their cage and ran up toward the Ca\u00f1on of the Cottonwoods, and then\nround behind Thunder Mountain, through the Gateway of Zu\u00f1i, and so on up\nthe valley.\n\nAll breathless, the maiden arrived at the open wicket and looked in.\nBehold, not a Turkey was there! Trailing them, she ran and she ran up\nthe valley to overtake them; but they were far ahead, and it was only\nafter a long time that she came within the sound of their voices, and\nthen, redoubling her speed, well-nigh overtook them, when she heard them\nsinging this song:\n\n \u201c_K\u2018yaanaa, to! to!\n K\u2018yaanaa, to! to!\n Ye ye!\n K\u2018yaanaa, to! to!\n K\u2018yaanaa, to! to!\n Yee huli huli!_\n\n \u201c_Hon awen Tsita\n Itiwanakw\u00efn\n Otakyaan aaa kyaa;\n Lesna akyaaa\n Shoya-k\u2018oskwi\n Tey\u00e4thltokw\u00efn\n Hon aawani!_\n\n \u201c_Ye yee huli huli,\n Tot-tot, tot-tot, tot-tot,\n Huli huli!\n Tot-tot, tot-tot, tot-tot,\n Huli huli!_\u201d[3]\n\n [3] This, like all the folk-songs, is difficult of translation;\n and that which is given is only approximate.\n\n \u201cUp the river, _to! to!_\n Up the river, _to! to!_\n Sing _ye ye!_\n Up the river, _to! to!_\n Up the river, _to! to!_\n Sing _yee huli huli!_\n\n \u201cOh, our maiden mother\n To the Middle Place\n To dance went away;\n Therefore as she lingers,\n To the Ca\u00f1on Mesa\n And the plains above it\n We all run away!\n\n \u201cSing _ye yee huli huli,\n Tot-tot, tot-tot, tot-tot,\n Huli huli!\n Tot-tot, tot-tot, tot-tot,\n Huli huli!_\u201d\n\nHearing this, the maiden called to her Turkeys; called and called in\nvain. They only quickened their steps, spreading their wings to help\nthem along, singing the song over and over until, indeed, they came to\nthe base of the Ca\u00f1on Mesa, at the borders of the Zu\u00f1i Mountains. Then\nsinging once more their song in full chorus, they spread wide their\nwings, and _thlakwa-a-a, thlakwa-a-a_, they fluttered away over the\nplains above.\n\nThe poor Turkey girl threw her hands up and looked down at her dress.\nWith dust and sweat, behold! it was changed to what it had been, and she\nwas the same poor Turkey girl that she was before. Weary, grieving, and\ndespairing, she returned to M\u00e1tsaki.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. Therefore, where you see the\nrocks leading up to the top of Ca\u00f1on Mesa (Shoya-k\u2018oskwi), there are\nthe tracks of turkeys and other figures to be seen. The latter are the\nsong that the Turkeys sang, graven in the rocks; and all over the plains\nalong the borders of Zu\u00f1i Mountains since that day turkeys have been\nmore abundant than in any other place.\n\nAfter all, the gods dispose of men according as men are fitted; and if\nthe poor be poor in heart and spirit as well as in appearance, how will\nthey be aught but poor to the end of their days?\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Pottery containers}]\n\n\n [Illustration: ZU\u00d1I FROM THE SOUTH\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE SUMMER BIRDS CAME\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients, in the town under Thunder Mountain called\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime, there lived a most beautiful maiden. But one thing which\nstruck the people who knew her was that she seldom came forth from her\nroom, or went out of her house; never seemed to care for the people\naround her, never seemed to care to see the young men when they were\ndancing.\n\nNow, this was the way of it. Through the roof of her room was a little\nskylight, open, and when it rained, one of the Gods of the Rain\ndescended in the rain-drops and wooed this maiden, and married her all\nunknown to her people; so that she was in his company every time it\nrained, and when the dew fell at night, on his ladder of water\ndescending he came, and she was very happy, and cared not for the\nsociety of men. By-and-by, behold! to the utter surprise of the people,\nwhose eyes could not see this god, her husband, there was a little boy\nborn to her.\n\nNow, he was the child of the gods, and, therefore, before he was many\ndays old, he had begun to run about and speak, and had wonderful\nintelligence and wonderful strength and vivacity. He was only a month or\ntwo old when he was like a child of five or six or eight years of age,\nand he would climb to the house-top and run down into the plaza and out\naround the village hunting birds or other small animals. With only his\nfingers and little stones for weapons, he never failed to slay and bring\nhome these little creatures, and his mother\u2019s house was supplied more\nthan any other house in the town with plumes for sacrifice, from the\nbirds which he captured in this way.\n\nFinally he observed that the older men of the tribe carried bows and\narrows, and that the arrows went more swiftly and straighter than the\nstones he threw; and though he never failed to kill small animals, he\nfound he could not kill the larger ones in that way. So he said to his\nmother one night: \u201cOh, mother, where does the wood grow that they make\nbows of, and where do they get sticks for their arrows? I wish you would\ntell me.\u201d\n\nBut the mother was quite silent; she didn\u2019t like to tell him, for she\nthought it would lead him away from the town and something would happen\nto him. But he kept questioning her until at last, weary with his\nimportunities, she said: \u201cWell, my little boy, if you go round the cliff\nhere to the eastern side, there is a great hollow in the rocks, and down\nat the bottom of that hollow is a great cave. Now, around that shelter\nin the rocks are growing the trees out of which bows are made, and there\nalso grow the bushes from which arrows are cut; they are so plentiful\nthat they could supply the whole town, and furnish all the hunters here\nwith bows and arrows; but they cannot get them, because in the cave\nlives a great Bear, a very savage being, and no one dares go near there\nto get timber for the bows or sticks for the arrows, because the Bear\nwould surely devour whoever ventured there. He has devoured many of our\npeople; therefore you must not go there to get these arrows.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, indeed,\u201d said the boy. But at night he lay down with much in his\nmind, and was so thoughtful that he hardly slept the whole night. He was\nplanning what he would do in the morning.\n\nThe next morning his mother was busy about her work, and finally she\nwent down to the spring for some water, and the little boy slipped out\nof the house, ran down the ladder, went to the river-side, stooped down,\nand crawled along the bank of the river, until he could get around on\nthe side of the cliff where the little valley of the spring that flows\nunder Thunder Mountain lies. There he climbed up and up until he came to\nthe shelter in the rocks round on the eastern side of Thunder Mountain.\nThe mouth of this hollow was entirely closed with fine yellow-wood and\noak, the best timber we have for bows, and straight sprouts were growing\neverywhere out of which arrows could be made.\n\n\u201cAh, this must be the place,\u201d said the boy, as he looked at it. \u201cI don\u2019t\nsee any Bear. I think I will climb up and see if there is anything to be\nafraid of, and try if I can cut a stick before the Bear comes out.\u201d\n\nHe started and climbed into the mouth of the cavern, and his father, one\nof the Gods of the Rain, threw a tremendous shaft of lightning, and it\nthundered, and the cave closed together.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d cried the boy. \u201cWhat in the world is the meaning of this?\u201d Then\nhe stood there a moment, and presently the clouds finished and the cave\nopened, and all was quiet. He started to go in once more, and down came\nthe lightning again, to remind him that he should not go in there.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d cried the boy again. \u201cWhat in the world does it mean?\u201d And he\nrubbed his eyes,--it had rather stunned him,--and so soon as it had\ncleared away he tried again, and again for the fourth time.\n\nFinally the god said, \u201cAh! I have reminded him and he does not heed. He\nmust go his own way.\u201d So the boy climbed into the cave.\n\nNo sooner had he got in than it began to get dark, and _Wah!_ came the\nBear on his hind legs and grabbed the boy and began to squeeze him very\ntight.\n\n\u201cO my! O my!\u201d cried he. \u201cDon\u2019t squeeze me so hard! It hurts; don\u2019t\nsqueeze me so hard! My mother is one of the most beautiful women you\never saw!\u201d\n\n\u201cHollo!\u201d exclaimed the Bear. \u201cWhat is that you say?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy mother is one of the most beautiful women you ever saw!\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed!\u201d said the Bear, as he relaxed his hold. \u201cMy son, sit down. What\ndid you come to my house for? I am sure you are very welcome.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d said the boy, \u201cI came to get a piece of wood for a bow and sticks\nfor arrows.\u201d\n\nSaid the Bear, \u201cI have looked out for this timber for a long time.\nThere is none better in the whole country. Let me tell you what I will\ndo. You don\u2019t look very strong. You haven\u2019t anything to cut the trees\ndown with. I will go myself and cut down a tree for you. I will pick out\na good one for a bow; not only that, but I will get fine sticks for\narrows, too.\u201d\n\nSo he stalked off into the forest, and crack, crack, he smashed the\ntrees down, and, picking out a good one, gnawed off the ends of it and\nbrought it to the boy, then gathered a lot of fine straight sticks for\narrow-shafts and brought them.\n\n\u201cThere,\u201d said he, \u201ctake those home. Do you know how to make a bow, my\nson?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I don\u2019t very well,\u201d replied he.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the Bear, \u201cI have cut off the ends; make it about that\nlength. Now take it home, and shave down the inside until it is thin\nenough to bend quickly at both ends, and lay it over the coals of fire\nso it will get hard and dry. That is the way to make a good bow.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the boy; and as he took up the bundle of sticks and\nthe stave for the bow, he said: \u201cJust come along toward night and I will\nintroduce you to my mother.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the old Bear; \u201cI will be along just about sunset. Then\nI can look at your bow and see whether you have made it well or not.\u201d\n\nSo the boy trudged home with his bundle of sticks and his bow stave, and\nwhen he arrived there his mother happened to be climbing out, and saw\nhim coming.\n\n\u201cYou wretched boy,\u201d she said, \u201cI told you not to go out to the cave! I\nwarrant you have been there where the Bear stays!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes, my mother; just see what I have brought,\u201d said the boy. \u201cI\nsold you to the Bear. He will be here to get you this evening. See what\nI have brought!\u201d and he laid out his bow-timber and arrow-shafts.\n\n\u201cOh,\u201d said she, \u201cyou are the most wretched and foolish of little boys;\nyou pay no attention to what any one says to you; your mother\u2019s word is\nnothing but wind in your ears.\u201d\n\n\u201cJust see what I have brought home,\u201d said he. He worked as hard as he\ncould to make his bow, stripped the arrow-shafts, smoothed and\nstraightened them before the fire, and made the points of obsidian--very\nblack it is; very hard and sharp were the points when he placed them on\nthe arrows. Now, after placing the feathers on the arrows, he stood them\nup on the roof of the house against the parapet in the sunlight to dry;\nand he had his bow on the other side of the house against the other\nparapet to dry. He was still at work, toward sunset, when he happened to\nlook up and saw the Bear coming along, slowly, comfortably, rolling over\nthe sand.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said he, \u201cthe old man is coming.\u201d He paid no attention to him,\nhowever.\n\nPresently the Bear came close to the ladder, and shook it to see if it\nwas strong enough to hold him.\n\n\u201cThou comest?\u201d asked the boy.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the Bear. \u201cHow have you been all day?\u201d\n\n\u201cHappy,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cHow is your mother?\u201d\n\n\u201cHappy,\u201d said the boy, \u201cexpecting you.\u201d\n\nSo the old Bear climbed up. \u201cAh, indeed,\u201d said he, as he got over the\nedge of the house, \u201chave you made the bow?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, after a fashion.\u201d\n\nSo the Bear went over, raised himself on his hind feet, looked at the\nbow, pulled it, and said, as he laid it down: \u201cIt is a splendid bow.\nWhat is this black stuff on these arrows?\u201d\n\n\u201cObsidian,\u201d answered the boy.\n\n\u201cThese points are nothing but black coals,\u201d said the Bear.\n\n\u201cI tell you,\u201d said the boy, \u201cthey are good, black, flint arrow-heads,\nhard and sharp as any others.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the other, \u201cnothing but coals.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, suppose you let me try one of those coals on you,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the Bear. He walked over to the other side of the roof\nand stood there, and the boy took one of the arrows, fitted it to the\nbow, and let go. It went straight into the heart of the Bear, and even\npassed through him entirely.\n\n\u201cWah!\u201d uttered the Bear, as he gave a great snort and rolled over on the\nhouse-top and died.\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d shouted the boy, \u201cwhat you had intended to do unto me, thus\nunto you! Oh, mother!\u201d called he, as he ran to the sky-hole, \u201chere is\nyour husband; come and see him. I have killed him; but, then, he would\nhave me make the experiment,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cOh, you foolish, foolish, disobedient boy!\u201d said the mother. \u201cWhat have\nyou been doing now? Are we safe?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d said he; \u201cmy step-father is as passive as if he were asleep.\u201d\nAnd he went on and skinned his once prospective step-father, and then\ntook out his heart and hung it to the cross-piece of the ladder as a\nsign that the people could go and get all the bow-timber and arrows they\npleased.\n\nThat night, after the evening meal was over, the boy sat down with his\nmother, and he said: \u201cBy the way, mother, are there any monsters or\nfearful creatures anywhere round about this country that kill people and\nmake trouble?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the mother, \u201cnone whatever.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know about that; I think there must be,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cNo, there are none whatever, I tell you,\u201d answered the mother.\n\nThe boy began to tumble on the floor, rolling about, playing with his\nmother\u2019s blankets, and throwing things around, and once in a while he\nwould ask her again the same question, until finally she got very cross\nwith him and said: \u201cYes, if you want to know, down there in the valley,\nbeyond the great plains of sagebrush, is a den of _Misho_ Lizards who\nare fearful and deadly to every one who goes near them. Therefore you\nhad better be careful how you run round the valley.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat makes them so fearful?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said she, \u201cthey are venomous; they have a way of throwing from\ntheir mouths or breath a sort of fluid which, whenever it strikes a\nperson, burns him, and whenever it strikes the eyes it blinds them. A\ngreat many people have perished there. Whenever a man arrives at their\nden they are very polite and greet him most courteously; they say: \u2018Come\nin; sit down right here in the middle of the floor before the fire.\u2019 But\nas soon as the person is seated in their house they gather round the\nwalls and throw this venom on him, and he dies almost immediately.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it possible?\u201d responded the little boy; and for some reason or other\nhe began to grow sleepy, and said: \u201cNow, let us go to sleep, mother.\u201d\n\nSo he lay down and slept. Just as soon as it was light the next morning\nhe aroused himself, dressed, took his bow and arrows, and, placing them\nin a corner near the ladder, said: \u201cOh, mother, give me my breakfast; I\nwant to go and shoot some little birds. I would like to have some\nroasted birds for dinner.\u201d\n\nShe gave him his breakfast as quickly as she could, and he ran down the\nladder and went to shooting at the birds, until he happened to see that\nhis mother and others were out of sight; then he skulked into the\nsagebrush and went as straight as he could for the den of the _Misho_\nLizards. There happened to be two young ones sunning themselves outside,\nand they said:\n\n\u201cAh, my fine little fellow, glad to see you this morning. Come in, come\nin; the old ones will be very much pleased to entertain you. Come in!\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you,\u201d said the boy. He walked in, but he felt under his coat to\nsee if a huge lump of rock salt he had was still there.\n\n\u201cSit right down here,\u201d said the old people. The whole den was filled\nwith these _Misho_ Lizards, and they were excessively polite, every one\nof them.\n\nThe boy sat down, and the old _Misho_ said to the young ones: \u201cHurry up,\nnow; be quick!\u201d And they began to throw their venom at him, and\ncontinued until he was all covered with it; but, knowing beforehand, and\nbeing the child of the gods, he was prepared and protected, and it did\nhim no harm.\n\n\u201cThank you, thank you,\u201d said the boy. \u201cI will do the same thing.\u201d Then\nhe pulled out the salt and pushed it down into the fire, where it\nexploded and entirely used up the whole council of _Misho_ Lizards.\n\n\u201cThere!\u201d cried the boy. \u201cThus would you have done unto me, thus unto\nyou.\u201d\n\nHe took two fine ones and cut out their hearts, then started for home.\nWhen he arrived there, he climbed the ladder and suspended the two\nhearts beside that of the Bear and went down into the house, saying,\n\u201cWell, mother, is dinner ready?\u201d\n\n\u201cThere now,\u201d said she, \u201cI know it. I saw you hang those hearts up. You\nhave been down there.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said he, \u201cthey are all gone--every solitary one of them.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, you foolish, foolish, disobedient fellow! I am all alone in the\nworld, and if you should go to some of those fearful places some time\nand not come back, who would hunt for me? What should I do?\u201d said the\nmother.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t be troubled, mother, now,\u201d said the boy. \u201cI don\u2019t think I will go\nany more. There is nothing else of that kind around, is there, mother?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, there is not,\u201d she replied; \u201cnot a thing. There may be somewhere in\nthe world, but there is not anywhere here.\u201d\n\nIn the evening, as he sat with his mother, the boy kept questioning and\nteasing her to tell him of some other monsters--pulling on her skirts\nand repeating his questions.\n\n\u201cI tell you,\u201d she said, \u201cthere are no such creatures.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, mother, I know there are,\u201d said he, \u201cand you must tell me about\nthem.\u201d\n\nSo he continued to bother her until her patience gave out, and she told\nhim of another monster. Said she: \u201cIf you follow that ca\u00f1on down to the\nsoutheast, there is a very, very, very high cliff there, and the trail\nthat goes over that cliff runs close by the side of a precipice. Now,\nthat has been for ages a terrible place, for there is a Giant living\nthere, who wears a hair-knot on his forehead. He lies there at length,\nsunning himself at his ease. He is very good-natured and very polite.\nHis legs stretch across the trail on which men have to go who pass that\nway, and there is no other way to get by. And whenever a man tries to go\nby that trail, he says: \u2018Pass right along, pass right along; I am glad\nto see you. Here is a fresh trail; some one has just passed. Don\u2019t\ndisturb me; I am sunning myself.\u2019 Down below is the den where his\nchildren live, and on the flesh of these people he feeds them.\u201d\n\n\u201cMercy!\u201d exclaimed the boy. \u201cFearful! I never shall go there, surely.\nThat is too terrible! Come, let us go to sleep; I don\u2019t want to hear\nanything more about it.\u201d\n\nBut the next morning, just as soon as daylight appeared, he got up,\ndressed himself, and snatched a morsel of food.\n\nHis mother said to him: \u201cWhere are you going? Are you thinking of that\nplace I told you about?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said he; \u201cI am going to kill some prairie-dogs right here in\nsight. I will take my war-club.\u201d\n\nSo he took his war-club, and thrust it into his belt in front, ran down\nthe hill on which the village stood, and straightway went off to the\nplace his mother had told him of. When he reached the top of the rocks\nhe looked down, and there, sure enough, lay the Giant with the forehead\nknot.\n\nThe Giant looked up and said: \u201cAh, my son, glad to see you this morning;\nglad to see you coming so early. Some one just passed here a little\nwhile ago; you can see his tracks there.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the boy, \u201cmake room for me.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, just step right over,\u201d said the old man; \u201cstep right over me.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can\u2019t step over your great legs,\u201d said the boy; \u201cdraw them up.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the old Demon. So he drew his knees up. \u201cThere, now,\nthere is plenty of room; pass right along, my son.\u201d\n\nJust as the boy got near the place, he thrust out his leg suddenly that\nway, to kick him off the cliff; but the boy was too nimble for him, and\njumped aside.\n\n\u201cOh, dear me,\u201d cried the Monster; \u201cI had a stitch in my leg; I had to\nstretch it out.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh,\u201d said the boy, \u201cyou tried to kick me off, did you?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no,\u201d said the old villain; \u201cI had a terrible stitch in my\nknee,\u201d--and he began to knead his knee in the most vehement manner.\n\u201cJust pass right along; I trust it won\u2019t happen again.\u201d\n\nThe boy again attempted to pass, and the same thing happened as before.\n\n\u201cOh, my knee! my knee!\u201d exclaimed the Monster.\n\n\u201cYes, your knee, your knee!\u201d said the boy, as he whipped out his\nwar-club and whacked the Giant on the head before he had time to recover\nhimself. \u201cThus unto me you would have done, thus unto you!\u201d said the\nboy.\n\nNo sooner had the Giant fallen than the little Top-knots gathered round\nhim and began to eat; and they ate and ate and ate,--there were many of\nthem, and they were voracious--until they came to the top-knot on the\nold fellow\u2019s head, and then one of them cried; \u201cOh, dear, alas and alas!\nthis is our own father!\u201d\n\nAnd while they were still crying, the boy cut out the Giant\u2019s heart and\nslung it over his shoulder; then he climbed down the cliff to where the\nyoung Top-knots were, and slew them all except two,--a pair of them.\nThen he took these two, who were still young, like little children, and\ngrasping one by the throat, wrung its neck and threw it into the air,\nwhen it suddenly became a winged creature, and spread out its wings and\nsoared away, crying: \u201cPeep, peep, peep,\u201d just as the falcons of today\ndo. Then he took the other one by the neck, and swung it round and\nround, and flung it into the air, and it flew away with a heavy motion,\nand cried: \u201cBoohoo, boohoo, boohoo!\u201d and became an owl.\n\n\u201cAh,\u201d said the boy, \u201cborn for evil, changed for good! Ye shall be the\nmeans whereby our children in the future shall sacrifice to the gods\nthemselves.\u201d\n\nThen he trudged along home with the Giant\u2019s heart, and when he got\nthere, he hung it on the cross-piece of the ladder by the side of the\nother hearts. It was almost night then.\n\n\u201cThere, now!\u201d said his mother, as he entered the house; \u201cI have been\ntroubled almost to death by your not coming home sooner. You went off to\nthe place I told you of; I know you did!\u201d\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d said he, \u201cof course I did. I went up there, and the poor fellows\nare all dead.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy will you not listen to me?\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cOh, it is all right, mother,\u201d said the boy. \u201cIt is all right.\u201d She went\non scolding him in the usual fashion, but he paid no attention to her.\n\nAs soon as she had sat down to her evening tasks, he asked: \u201cNow, is\nthere any other of these terrible creatures?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I shall tell you of nothing more now,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cWhy, is there anything more?\u201d asked the boy.\n\n\u201cNo, there is not,\u201d replied she.\n\n\u201cAh, mother, I think there must be.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; there is nothing more, I tell you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, mother, I think there must be.\u201d\n\nAnd he kept bothering and teasing until she told him again (she knew she\nwould have to): \u201cYes, away down in the valley, some distance from here,\nnear the little Cold-making Hill, there lives a fearful creature, a\nfour-fold Elk or Bison, more enormous than any other living thing.\n_Awiteli Wakashi_ he is called, and no one can go near him. He rushes\nstamping and bellowing about the country, and people never pass through\nthat section from fear.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh,\u201d said the boy; \u201cdon\u2019t tell me any more; he must be a fearful\ncreature, indeed.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; but you will be sure to go there,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cOh, no, no, mother; no, indeed!\u201d\n\nBut the next morning he went earlier than ever, carrying with him his\nbows and arrows. He was so filled with dread, however, or pretended to\nbe, that as he went along the trail he began to cry and sniffle, and\nwalk very slowly, until he came near the hole of an old Gopher, his\ngrandfather. The old fellow was working away, digging another cellar,\nthrowing the dirt out, when he heard this crying. Said he: \u201cThat is my\ngrandson; I wonder what he is up to now.\u201d So he ran and stuck his nose\nout of the hole he was digging, and said: \u201cOh, my grandchild, where are\nyou going?\u201d\n\nThe boy stopped and began to look around.\n\n\u201cRight here! right here!\u201d cried the grandfather, calling his attention\nto the hole. \u201cCome, my boy.\u201d\n\nThe boy put his foot in, and the hole enlarged, and he went down into\nit.\n\n\u201cNow, dry your eyes, my grandchild, and tell me what is the matter.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the boy, \u201cI was going to find the four-fold Bison. I wanted\nto take a look at him, but I am frightened!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, what is the matter? Why do you not go?\u201d said the Gopher.\n\n\u201cWell, to tell you the truth, I thought I would try to kill him,\u201d he\nanswered.\n\n\u201cWell, I will do what I can to help; you had better not try to do it\nalone. Sit here comfortably; dry your eyes, and I will see what I can\ndo.\u201d\n\nThe old Gopher began to dig, dig, dig under the ground for a long way,\nmaking a fine tunnel, and packed it hard on the top and sides so that it\nwould not fall in. He finally came to hear the \u201cthud, thud, thud\u201d of the\nheart of this creature, where it was lying, and dug the hole up to that\nspot. When he got there he saw the long layers of hair on its body,\nwhere no arrow could penetrate, and he cut the hair off, so that the\nskin showed white. Then he silently stole back to where the boy was and\nsaid: \u201cNow, my boy, take your bow and arrows and go along through this\nhole until you get to where the tunnel turns upward, and then, if you\nlook well, you will see a light patch. That is the skin next the heart\nof the four-fold Bison. He is sleeping there. You will hear the \u2018thud,\nthud, thud\u2019 of his heart. Shoot him exactly in the middle of that place,\nand then, mind you, turn around and run for your life, and the moment\nyou get to my hole, tumble in, headforemost or any way.\u201d\n\nSo the boy did as he was told--crawled through the tunnel until he came\nto where it went upward, saw the light patch, and let fly an arrow with\nall his might, then rushed and scrambled back as hard as he could. With\na roar that shook the earth the four-fold Bison fell over, then\nstruggled to his feet, snorted, bellowed, and stuck his great horn into\nthe tunnel, and like a flash of fire ripped it from end to end, just as\nthe boy came tumbling into the deeper hole of his grandfather.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d exclaimed the Gopher.\n\n\u201cHe almost got me,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cSit still a moment and rest, my grandson,\u201d said the Gopher. \u201cHe didn\u2019t\ncatch you. I will go and see whether he is dead.\u201d\n\nSo the Gopher stuck his nose out of the hole and saw there a great heap\nof flesh lying. He went out, nosed around, and smelt, jumped back, and\nwent forward again until he came to the end of the creature, and then\nhe took one of his nails and scratched out an eye, and there was no sign\nof life. So he ran back to the boy, and said: \u201cYes, he breathes no more;\nyou need not fear him longer.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, thank you, my grandfather!\u201d said the boy. And he climbed out, and\nlaid himself to work to skin the beast. He took off its great thick\nskin, and cut off a suitable piece of it, for the whole pelt was so\nlarge and heavy that he could not carry it; then he took out the\nanimal\u2019s great heart, and finally one of the large intestines and filled\nit with blood, then started for home. He went slowly, because his load\nwas so heavy, and when he arrived he hung the heart on the ladder by the\nside of the others, and dragged the pelt to the sky-hole, and nearly\nscared the wits out of his mother by dropping it into the room.\n\n\u201cOh, my child, now, here you are! Where have you been?\u201d cried she. \u201cI\nwarned you of the place where the four-fold Bison was; I wonder that you\never came home.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, the poor creature!\u201d said the boy; \u201che is dead. Just look at this.\nHe isn\u2019t handsome any more; he isn\u2019t strong and large any more.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, you wretched, wretched boy! You will be the death of me, as well as\nof yourself, some time,\u201d said the mother.\n\n\u201cNo, mother,\u201d said the boy; \u201cthat is all nonsense.\u201d\n\nThat evening the boy said to his mother: \u201cNow, mother, is there anything\nelse of this kind left? If there is, I want to know it. Now, don\u2019t\ndisappoint me by refusing to tell.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, my dear son,\u201d said she, \u201cI wish you wouldn\u2019t ask me; but indeed\nthere is. There are terrible birds, great Eagles, fearful Eagles, living\nover on Shuntekia. In the very middle of an enormous cliff is a hollow\nplace in the rocks where is built their nest, and there are their young\nones. Day after day, far and near, they catch up children and young men\nand women, and carry them away, never more to be seen. These birds are\nmore terrible than all the rest, because how can one get near to slay\nthem? My son, I do hope and trust that you will not go this time,--but,\nyou foolish little boy, I see that you will go.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, mother, let us go to sleep, and never mind anything about it,\u201d\nsaid the boy.\n\nBut after his mother had gone to sleep, he took the piece of rawhide he\nhad skinned from the four-fold Bison, and, cutting it out, made himself\na suit--a green rawhide suit, skin-tight almost, so that it was\nperfectly smooth. Then he scraped the hair off, greased it all over, and\nput it away inside a blanket so that it would not dry. In the morning,\nquite early, he took his weapons, and taking also his rawhide suit, and\nthe section of the four-fold Bison\u2019s intestine which he had filled with\nblood, he ran into the inlet, and across it, and climbed the mesa near\nthe Shuntekia cliff. When he came within a short distance of the nest of\nthe Eagles, he stopped and slipped on his rawhide suit, and tied the\nintestine of blood round his neck, like a sausage.\n\nThen he began to cry and shake his head, and he cried louder than there\nwas any need of his doing in reality; for presently the old father of\nthe Eagles, who was away up in the sky, just a mere speck, heard and saw\nhim and came swishing down in a great circle, winding round and round\nthe boy, and the boy looked up and began to cry louder still, as if\nfrightened out of his wits, and finally rolled himself up like a\nporcupine, and threw himself down into the trail, crying and howling\nwith apparent fear. The Eagle swooped down on him, and tried to grasp\nhim in his talons, and, _kopo kopooo_, his claws simply slipped off the\nrawhide coat. Then the Eagle made a fiercer grab at him and grew angry,\nbut his claws would continually slip off, until he tore a rent in the\nintestine about the boy\u2019s neck, and the blood began to stream over the\nboy\u2019s coat, making it more slippery than ever. When the Eagle smelt the\nblood, he thought he had got him, and it made him fiercer than ever; and\nfinally, during his struggling, he got one talon through a stitch in the\ncoat, and he spread out his wings, and flew up, and circled round and\nround over the point where the young Eagles nest was, when he let go and\nshook the boy free, and the boy rolled over and over and came down into\nthe nest; but he struck on a great heap of brush, which broke his fall.\nHe lay there quite still, and the old Eagle swooped down and poised\nhimself on a great crag of rock near by, which was his usual perching\nplace.\n\n\u201cThere, my children, my little ones,\u201d said he, \u201cI have brought you food.\nFeast yourselves! Feast yourselves! For that reason I brought it.\u201d\n\nSo the little Eagles, who were very awkward, long-legged and\nshort-winged, limped up to the boy and reached out their claws and\nopened their beaks, ready to strike him in the face. He lay there quite\nstill until they got very near, and then said to them: \u201c_Shhsht!_\u201d And\nthey tumbled back, being awkward little fellows, and stretched up their\nnecks and looked at him, as Eagles will.\n\nThen the old Eagle said: \u201cWhy don\u2019t you eat him? Feast yourselves, my\nchildren, feast yourselves!\u201d\n\nSo they advanced again, more cautiously this time, and a little more\ndeterminedly too; and they reached out their beaks to tear him, and he\nsaid: \u201c_Shhsht!_\u201d and, under his breath, \u201cDon\u2019t eat me!\u201d And they jumped\nback again.\n\n\u201cWhat in the world is the matter with you little fools?\u201d said the old\nEagle. \u201cEat him! I can\u2019t stay here any longer; I have to go away and\nhunt to feed you; but you don\u2019t seem to appreciate my efforts much.\u201d And\nhe lifted his wings, rose into the air, and sailed off to the northward.\n\nThen the two young Eagles began to walk around the boy, and to examine\nhim at all points. Finally they approached his feet and hands.\n\n\u201cBe careful, be careful, don\u2019t eat me! Tell me about what time your\nmother comes home,\u201d said he, sitting up. \u201cWhat time does she usually\ncome?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the little Eagles, \u201cshe comes home when the clouds begin to\ngather and throw their shadow over our nest.\u201d (Really, it was the\nshadow of the mother Eagle herself that was thrown over the nest.)\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the boy; \u201cwhat time does your father come home?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen the fine rain begins to fall,\u201d said they, meaning the dew.\n\n\u201cOh,\u201d said the boy. So he sat there, and by-and-by, sure enough, away\noff in the sky, carrying something dangling from her feet, came the old\nmother Eagle. She soared round and round until she was over the nest,\nwhen she dropped her burden, and over and over it fell and tumbled into\nthe nest, a poor, dead, beautiful maiden. The young boy looked at her,\nand his heart grew very hot, and when the old Eagle came and perched, in\na moment he let fly an arrow, and struck her down and dashed her brains\nout.\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d exclaimed the boy. \u201cWhat you have done to many, thus unto\nyou.\u201d\n\nThen he took his station again, and by-and-by the old father Eagle came,\nbearing a youth, fair to look upon, and dropped him into the nest. The\nyoung boy shut his teeth, and he said: \u201cThus unto many you have done,\nand thus unto me you would have done; so unto you.\u201d And he drew an arrow\nand shot him. Then he turned to the two young Eagles and killed them,\nand plucked out all the beautiful colored feathers about their necks,\nuntil he had a large bundle of fine plumes with which he thought to wing\nhis arrows or to waft his prayers.\n\nThen he looked down the cliff and saw there was no way to climb down,\nand there was no way to climb up. Then he began to cry, and sat on the\nedge of the cliff, and cried so loud that the old Bat Woman, who was\ngathering cactus-berries below, or thought she was, overheard the boy.\n\nSaid she: \u201cNow, just listen to that. I warrant it is my fool of a\ngrandson, who is always trying to get himself into a scrape. I am sure\nit must be so. Phoo! phoo!\u201d\n\nShe spilled out all the berries she had found from the basket she had on\nher back, and then labored up to where she could look over the edge of\nthe shelf.\n\n\u201cYes, there you are,\u201d said she; \u201cyou simpleton! you wretched boy! What\nare you doing here?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, my grandmother,\u201d said he, \u201cI have got into a place and I cannot get\nout.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said she; \u201cif you were anything else but such a fool of a\ngrandson and such a hard-hearted wretch of a boy, I would help you get\ndown; but you never do as your mother and grandmother or grandfathers\ntell you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, my grandmother, I will do just as you tell me this time,\u201d said the\nboy.\n\n\u201cNow, will you?\u201d said she. \u201cNow, can you be certain?--will you promise\nme that you will keep your eyes shut, and join me, at least in your\nheart, in the prayer which I sing when I fly down? _Yan lehalliah\nkiana._ Never open your eyes; if you do, the gods will teach you a\nlesson, and your poor old grandmother, too.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will do just as you tell me,\u201d said he, as he reached over and took up\nhis plumes and held them ready.\n\n\u201cNot so fast, my child,\u201d said she; \u201cyou must promise me.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, my grandmother, I will do just as you tell me,\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cWell, step into my basket, very carefully now. As I go down I shall go\nvery prayerfully, depending on the gods to carry so much more than I\nusually carry. Do you not wink once, my grandson.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right; I will keep my eyes shut this time,\u201d said he. So he sat down\nand squeezed his eyes together, and held his plumes tight, and then the\nold grandmother launched herself forth on her skin wings. After she had\nstruggled a little, she began to sing:\n\n \u201cHa ash tchaa ni,--Ha ash tchaa ni:\n Tche pa naa,--thlen-thle.\n Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, just listen to that,\u201d said the boy; \u201cmy old grandmother is singing\none of those tedious prayers; it will take us forever to go down.\u201d\n\nThen presently the old Bat Woman, perfectly unconscious of his state of\nmind, began to sing again:\n\n \u201cThlen thla kia yai na kia.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere she goes again,\u201d said he to himself; \u201cI declare, I must look up;\nit will drive me wild to sit here all this time and hear my old\ngrandmother try to sing.\u201d\n\nThen, after a little while, she commenced again:\n\n \u201cHa ash tchaa ni,--Ha ash tchaa ni:\n Tche pa naa,--thlen-thle.\n Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!\u201d\n\nThe boy stretched himself up, and said: \u201cLook here, grandmother! I have\nheard your \u2018_Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!_\u2019 enough this time. I am going to open\nmy eyes.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, my grandchild, never think of such a thing.\u201d Then she began again\nto sing:\n\n \u201cHa ash tchaa ni,--Ha ash tchaa ni:\n Tche pa naa,--thlen-thle.\n Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!\u201d\n\nShe was not near the ground when she finished it the fourth time, and\nthe boy would not stand it any more. Lo! he opened his eyes, and the old\ngrandmother knew it in a moment. Over and over, boy over bat, bat over\nboy, and the basket between them, they went whirling and pitching down,\nthe old grandmother tugging at her basket and scolding the boy.\n\n\u201cNow, you foolish, disobedient one! I told you what would happen! You\nsee what you have done!\u201d and so on until they fell to the ground. It\nfairly knocked the breath out of the boy, and when he got up again he\nyelled lustily.\n\nThe old grandmother picked herself up, stretched herself, and cried out\nanew: \u201cYou wretched, foolish, hard-hearted boy; I never will do anything\nfor you again--never, never, never!\u201d\n\n\u201cI know, my grandmother,\u201d said the boy, \u201cbut you kept up that \u2018_Thlen!\nThlen! Thlen!_\u2019 so much. What in the world did you want to spend so much\ntime _thlening, thlening_, and buzzing round in that way for?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, me!\u201d said she, \u201che never did know anything--never will be taught\nto know anything.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said she to him, \u201cyou might as well come and eat with me. I have\nbeen gathering cactus-fruit, and you can eat and then go home.\u201d She took\nhim to the place where she had poured out the contents of the basket,\nbut there was scarcely a cactus-berry. There were cedar-berries, cones,\nsticks, little balls of dirt, coyote-berries, and everything else\nuneatable.\n\n\u201cSit down, my grandson, and eat; strengthen yourself after your various\nadventures and exertions. I feel very weary myself,\u201d said she. And she\ntook a nip of one of them; but the boy couldn\u2019t exactly bring himself to\neat. The truth is, the old woman\u2019s eyes were bad, in the same way that\nbats\u2019 eyes are usually bad, and she couldn\u2019t tell a cactus-berry from\nanything else round and rough.\n\n\u201cWell, inasmuch as you won\u2019t eat, my grandson,\u201d said she, \u201cwhy, I can\u2019t\nconceive, for these are very good, it seems to me. You had better run\nalong home now, or your mother will be killing herself thinking of you.\nNow, I have only one direction to give you. You don\u2019t deserve any, but I\nwill give you one. See that you pay attention to it. If not, the worst\nis your own. You have gathered a beautiful store of feathers. Now, be\nvery careful. Those creatures who bore those feathers have gained their\nlives from the lives of living beings, and therefore their feathers\ndiffer from other feathers. Heed what I say, my grandson. When you come\nto any place where flowers are blooming,--where the sunflowers make the\nfield yellow,--walk round those flowers if you want to get home with\nthese feathers. And when you come to more flowers, walk round them. If\nyou do not do that, just as you came you will go back to your home.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right, my grandmother,\u201d said the boy. So, after bidding her\ngood-by, he trudged away with his bundle of feathers; and when he came\nto a great plain of sunflowers and other flowers he walked round them;\nand when he came to another large patch he walked round them, and then\nanother, and so on; but finally he stopped, for it seemed to him that\nthere were nothing but fields of flowers all the way home. He thought he\nhad never seen so many before.\n\n\u201cI declare,\u201d said he, \u201cI will not walk round those flowers any more. I\nwill hang on to these feathers, though.\u201d\n\nSo he took a good hold of them and walked in amongst the flowers. But no\nsooner had he entered the field than flutter, flutter, flutter, little\nwings began to fly out from the bundle of feathers, and the bundle began\nto grow smaller and smaller, until it wholly disappeared. These wings\nwhich flew out were the wings of the Sacred Birds of Summerland, made\nliving by the lives that had supported the birds which bore those\nfeathers, and by coming into the environment which they had so loved,\nthe atmosphere which flowers always bring of summer.\n\nThus it was, my children, in the days of the ancients, and for that\nreason we have little jay-birds, little sparrows, little finches, little\nwillow-birds, and all the beautiful little birds that bring the summer,\nand they always hover over flowers.\n\n\u201cMy friends\u201d [said the story-teller], \u201cthat is the way we live. I am\nvery glad, otherwise I would not have told the story, for it is not\nexactly right that I should,--I am very glad to demonstrate to you that\nwe also have books; only they are not books with marks in them, but\nwords in our hearts, which have been placed there by our ancients long\nago, even so long ago as when the world was new and young, like unripe\nfruit. And I like you to know these things, because people say that the\nZu\u00f1is are dark people.\u201d[4]\n\n [4] That is, people in the dark--having no knowledge.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Bird symbols}]\n\n\n [Illustration: WA\u00cdHUSIWA\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nTHE SERPENT OF THE SEA\n\n\nNOTE.--The priest of the K\u2019i\u00e1klu or epic-ritual of Zu\u00f1i is never allowed\nto initiate the telling of short folk-stories. If he make such a\nbeginning, he must complete the whole cycle before he ceases his recital\nor his listeners relax their attention. The following tale was told by\nan attendant Indian (not a priest), whose name is Wa\u00edhusiwa.\n\n\u201c_Son ah tehi!_\u201d he exclaimed, which may be interpreted: \u201cLet us abide\nwith the ancients tonight.\u201d\n\nThe listeners reply: \u201c_\u00c9-so_,\u201d or \u201c_Tea-tu_.\u201d (\u201cCertainly,\u201d or \u201cBe it\nwell.\u201d)\n\n\nIn the times of our forefathers, under Thunder Mountain was a village\ncalled K\u2019i\u00e1kime (\u201cHome of the Eagles\u201d). It is now in ruins; the roofs\nare gone, the ladders have decayed, the hearths grown cold. But when it\nwas all still perfect, and, as it were, new, there lived in this village\na maiden, the daughter of the priest-chief. She was beautiful, but\npossessed of this peculiarity of character: There was a sacred spring of\nwater at the foot of the terrace whereon stood the town. We now call it\nthe Pool of the Apaches; but then it was sacred to K\u00f3lowissi (the\nSerpent of the Sea). Now, at this spring the girl displayed her\npeculiarity, which was that of a passion for neatness and cleanliness of\nperson and clothing. She could not endure the slightest speck or\nparticle of dust or dirt upon her clothes or person, and so she spent\nmost of her time in washing all the things she used and in bathing\nherself in the waters of this spring.\n\nNow, these waters, being sacred to the Serpent of the Sea, should not\nhave been defiled in this way. As might have been expected, K\u00f3lowissi\nbecame troubled and angry at the sacrilege committed in the sacred\nwaters by the maiden, and he said: \u201cWhy does this maiden defile the\nsacred waters of my spring with the dirt of her apparel and the dun of\nher person? I must see to this.\u201d So he devised a plan by which to\nprevent the sacrilege and to punish its author.\n\nWhen the maiden came again to the spring, what should she behold but a\nbeautiful little child seated amidst the waters, splashing them, cooing\nand smiling. It was the Sea Serpent, wearing the semblance of a\nchild,--for a god may assume any form at its pleasure, you know. There\nsat the child, laughing and playing in the water. The girl looked around\nin all directions--north, south, east, and west--but could see no one,\nnor any traces of persons who might have brought hither the beautiful\nlittle child. She said to herself: \u201cI wonder whose child this may be! It\nwould seem to be that of some unkind and cruel mother, who has deserted\nit and left it here to perish. And the poor little child does not yet\nknow that it is left all alone. Poor little thing! I will take it in my\narms and care for it.\u201d\n\nThe maiden then talked softly to the young child, and took it in her\narms, and hastened with it up the hill to her house, and, climbing up\nthe ladder, carried the child in her arms into the room where she slept.\n\nHer peculiarity of character, her dislike of all dirt or dust, led her\nto dwell apart from the rest of her family, in a room by herself above\nall of the other apartments.\n\nShe was so pleased with the child that when she had got him into her\nroom she sat down on the floor and played with him, laughing at his\npranks and smiling into his face; and he answered her in baby fashion\nwith cooings and smiles of his own, so that her heart became very happy\nand loving. So it happened that thus was she engaged for a long while\nand utterly unmindful of the lapse of time.\n\nMeanwhile, the younger sisters had prepared the meal, and were awaiting\nthe return of the elder sister.\n\n\u201cWhere, I wonder, can she be?\u201d one of them asked.\n\n\u201cShe is probably down at the spring,\u201d said the old father; \u201cshe is\nbathing and washing her clothes, as usual, of course! Run down and call\nher.\u201d\n\nBut the younger sister, on going, could find no trace of her at the\nspring. So she climbed the ladder to the private room of this elder\nsister, and there found her, as has been told, playing with the little\nchild. She hastened back to inform her father of what she had seen. But\nthe old man sat silent and thoughtful. He knew that the waters of the\nspring were sacred. When the rest of the family were excited, and ran to\nbehold the pretty prodigy, he cried out, therefore: \u201cCome back! come\nback! Why do you make fools of yourselves? Do you suppose any mother\nwould leave her own child in the waters of this or any other spring?\nThere is something more of meaning than seems in all this.\u201d\n\nWhen they again went and called the maiden to come down to the meal\nspread for her, she could not be induced to leave the child.\n\n\u201cSee! it is as you might expect,\u201d said the father. \u201cA woman will not\nleave a child on any inducement; how much less her own.\u201d\n\nThe child at length grew sleepy. The maiden placed it on a bed, and,\ngrowing sleepy herself, at length lay by its side and fell asleep. Her\nsleep was genuine, but the sleep of the child was feigned. The child\nbecame elongated by degrees, as it were, fulfilling some horrible dream,\nand soon appeared as an enormous Serpent that coiled itself round and\nround the room until it was full of scaly, gleaming circles. Then,\nplacing its head near the head of the maiden, the great Serpent\nsurrounded her with its coils, taking finally its own tail in its mouth.\n\nThe night passed, and in the morning when the breakfast was prepared,\nand yet the maiden did not descend, and the younger sisters became\nimpatient at the delay, the old man said: \u201cNow that she has the child to\nplay with, she will care little for aught else. That is enough to occupy\nthe entire attention of any woman.\u201d\n\nBut the little sister ran up to the room and called. Receiving no\nanswer, she tried to open the door; she could not move it, because the\nSerpent\u2019s coils filled the room and pressed against it. She pushed the\ndoor with all her might, but it could not be moved. She again and again\ncalled her sister\u2019s name, but no response came. Beginning now to be\nfrightened, she ran to the sky-hole over the room in which she had left\nthe others and cried out for help. They hastily joined her,--all save\nthe old father,--and together were able to press the door sufficiently\nto get a glimpse of the great scales and folds of the Serpent. Then the\nwomen all ran screaming to the old father. The old man, priest and sage\nas he was, quieted them with these words: \u201cI expected as much as this\nfrom the first report which you gave me. It was impossible, as I then\nsaid, that a woman should be so foolish as to leave her child playing\neven near the waters of the spring. But it is not impossible, it seems,\nthat one should be so foolish as to take into her arms a child found as\nthis one was.\u201d\n\nThereupon he walked out of the house, deliberately and thoughtful, angry\nin his mind against his eldest daughter. Ascending to her room, he\npushed against the door and called to the Serpent of the Sea: \u201cOh,\nK\u00f3lowissi! It is I, who speak to thee, O Serpent of the Sea; I, thy\npriest. Let, I pray thee, let my child come to me again, and I will make\natonement for her errors. Release her, though she has been so foolish,\nfor she is thine, absolutely thine. But let her return once more to us\nthat we may make atonement to thee more amply.\u201d So prayed the priest to\nthe Serpent of the Sea.\n\nWhen he had done this the great Serpent loosened his coils, and as he\ndid so the whole building shook violently, and all the villagers became\naware of the event, and trembled with fear.\n\nThe maiden at once awoke and cried piteously to her father for help.\n\n\u201cCome and release me, oh, my father! Come and release me!\u201d she cried.\n\nAs the coils loosened she found herself able to rise. No sooner had she\ndone this than the great Serpent bent the folds of his large coils\nnearest the doorway upward so that they formed an arch. Under this,\nfilled with terror, the girl passed. She was almost stunned with the\ndread din of the monster\u2019s scales rasping past one another with a noise\nlike the sound of flints trodden under the feet of a rapid runner, and\nonce away from the writhing mass of coils, the poor maiden ran like a\nfrightened deer out of the doorway, down the ladder and into the room\nbelow, casting herself on the breast of her mother.\n\nBut the priest still remained praying to the Serpent; and he ended his\nprayer as he had begun it, saying: \u201cIt shall be even as I have said; she\nshall be thine!\u201d\n\nHe then went away and called the two warrior priest-chiefs of the town,\nand these called together all the other priests in sacred council. Then\nthey performed the solemn ceremonies of the sacred rites--preparing\nplumes, prayer-wands, and offerings of treasure.\n\nAfter four days of labor, these things they arranged and consecrated to\nthe Serpent of the Sea. On that morning the old priest called his\ndaughter and told her she must make ready to take these sacrifices and\nyield them up, even with herself,--most precious of them all,--to the\ngreat Serpent of the Sea; that she must yield up also all thoughts of\nher people and home forever, and go hence to the house of the great\nSerpent of the Sea, even in the Waters of the World. \u201cFor it seems,\u201d\nsaid he, \u201cto have been your desire to do thus, as manifested by your\nactions. You used even the sacred water for profane purposes; now this\nthat I have told you is inevitable. Come; the time when you must prepare\nyourself to depart is near at hand.\u201d\n\nShe went forth from the home of her childhood with sad cries, clinging\nto the neck of her mother and shivering with terror. In the plaza,\namidst the lamentations of all the people, they dressed her in her\nsacred cotton robes of ceremonial, embroidered elaborately, and adorned\nher with earrings, bracelets, beads,--many beautiful, precious things.\nThey painted her cheeks with red spots as if for a dance; they made a\nroad of sacred meal toward the Door of the Serpent of the Sea--a distant\nspring in our land known to this day as the Doorway to the Serpent of\nthe Sea--four steps toward this spring did they mark in sacred terraces\non the ground at the western way of the plaza. And when they had\nfinished the sacred road, the old priest, who never shed one tear,\nalthough all the villagers wept sore,--for the maiden was very\nbeautiful,--instructed his daughter to go forth on the terraced road,\nand, standing there, call the Serpent to come to her.\n\nThen the door opened, and the Serpent descended from the high room where\nhe was coiled, and, without using ladders, let his head and breast down\nto the ground in great undulations. He placed his head on the shoulder\nof the maiden, and the word was given--the word: \u201cIt is time\u201d--and the\nmaiden slowly started toward the west, cowering beneath her burden; but\nwhenever she staggered with fear and weariness and was like to wander\nfrom the way, the Serpent gently pushed her onward and straightened her\ncourse.\n\nThus they went toward the river trail and in it, on and over the\nMountain of the Red Paint; yet still the Serpent was not all uncoiled\nfrom the maiden\u2019s room in the house, but continued to crawl forth until\nthey were past the mountain--when the last of his length came forth.\nHere he began to draw himself together again and to assume a new shape.\nSo that ere long his serpent form contracted, until, lifting his head\nfrom the maiden\u2019s shoulder, he stood up, in form a beautiful youth in\nsacred gala attire! He placed the scales of his serpent form, now small,\nunder his flowing mantle, and called out to the maiden in a hoarse,\nhissing voice: \u201cLet us speak one to the other. Are you tired, girl?\u201d Yet\nshe never moved her head, but plodded on with her eyes cast down.\n\n\u201cAre you weary, poor maiden?\u201d--then he said in a gentler voice, as he\narose erect and fell a little behind her, and wrapped his scales more\nclosely in his blanket--and he was now such a splendid and brave hero,\nso magnificently dressed! And he repeated, in a still softer voice: \u201cAre\nyou still weary, poor maiden?\u201d\n\nAt first she dared not look around, though the voice, so changed,\nsounded so far behind her and thrilled her wonderfully with its\nkindness. Yet she still felt the weight on her shoulder, the weight of\nthat dreaded Serpent\u2019s head; for you know after one has carried a heavy\nburden on his shoulder or back, if it be removed he does not at once\nknow that it is taken away; it seems still to oppress and pain him. So\nit was with her; but at length she turned around a little and saw a\nyoung man--a brave and handsome young man.\n\n\u201cMay I walk by your side?\u201d said he, catching her eye. \u201cWhy do you not\nspeak with me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am filled with fear and sadness and shame,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cWhy?\u201d asked he. \u201cWhat do you fear?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause I came with a fearful creature forth from my home, and he\nrested his head upon my shoulder, and even now I feel his presence\nthere,\u201d said she, lifting her hand to the place where his head had\nrested, even still fearing that it might be there.\n\n\u201cBut I came all the way with you,\u201d said he, \u201cand I saw no such creature\nas you describe.\u201d\n\nUpon this she stopped and turned back and looked again at him, and said:\n\u201cYou came all the way? I wonder where this fearful being has gone!\u201d\n\nHe smiled, and replied: \u201cI know where he has gone.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, youth and friend, will he now leave me in peace,\u201d said she, \u201cand\nlet me return to the home of my people?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied he, \u201cbecause he thinks very much of you.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not? Where is he?\u201d\n\n\u201cHe is here,\u201d said the youth, smiling, and laying his hand on his own\nheart. \u201cI am he.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are he?\u201d cried the maiden. Then she looked at him again, and would\nnot believe him.\n\n\u201cYea, my maiden, I am he!\u201d said he. And he drew forth from under his\nflowing mantle the shrivelled serpent scales, and showed them as proofs\nof his word. It was wonderful and beautiful to the maiden to see that he\nwas thus, a gentle being; and she looked at him long.\n\nThen he said: \u201cYes, I am he. I love you, my maiden! Will you not haply\ncome forth and dwell with me? Yes, you will go with me, and dwell with\nme, and I will dwell with you, and I will love you. I dwell not now, but\never, in all the Waters of the World, and in each particular water. In\nall and each you will dwell with me forever, and we will love each\nother.\u201d\n\nBehold! As they journeyed on, the maiden quite forgot that she had been\nsad; she forgot her old home, and followed and descended with him into\nthe Doorway of the Serpent of the Sea and dwelt with him ever after.\n\n * * * * *\n\nIt was thus in the days of the ancients. Therefore the ancients, no less\nthan ourselves, avoided using springs, except for the drinking of their\nwater; for to this day we hold the flowing springs the most precious\nthings on earth, and therefore use them not for any profane purposes\nwhatsoever.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE MAIDEN OF THE YELLOW ROCKS\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients, when our ancestors lived in the Village of\nthe Yellow Rocks,[5] also in the Salt City,[6] also in the Village of\nthe Winds,[7] and also in the Village of the White Flowering Herbs, and\nalso in the Village of Odd Waters, where they come forth, when in fact\nall these broken-down villages were inhabited by our ancients, there\nlived in the Village of the Yellow Rocks a very beautiful maiden, the\ndaughter of the high priest.\n\n [5] Situated about seven miles east of Zu\u00f1i.\n\n [6] M\u00e1tsaki, now a ruin about three miles east of Zu\u00f1i.\n\n [7] P\u00ednawa, an ancient ruin about a mile and a half west of\n Zu\u00f1i.\n\nAlthough a woman, she was wonderfully endowed by birth with the magic\nknowledge of the hunt and with the knowledge of all the animals who\ncontribute to the sustenance of man,--game animals. And, although a\nwoman, she was also somewhat bad in her disposition, and selfish, in\nthat, possessing this knowledge above all other men and women, she\nconcluded she would have all these animals--the deer, antelope,\nrabbits--to herself. So, through her wonderful knowledge of their habits\nand language, she communicated with them and charmed them, and on the\ntop of the mountain--where you will see to this day the ancient figures\nof the deer cut in the rock--she built a huge corral, and gathered one\nafter another all the deer and antelope and other wild animals of that\ngreat country. And the hunters of these villages hunted in vain; they\ntrailed the deer and the antelope, but they lost their trails and always\ncame home with nothing save the weapons they took with them. But this\nmaiden, whenever she wished for deer, would go to her corral and kill\nwhatever animal she wanted; so she and her family always had plenty of\nmeat, while others were without it; always had plenty of buckskins with\nwhich to make moccasins and apparel, while others were every day wearing\nout their old supply and never able to replenish it.\n\nNow, this girl was surpassingly beautiful, and was looked upon by many a\nyoung man as the flower of his heart and the one on whom he would\nultimately concentrate his thoughts for life. Amongst these young men,\nthe first to manifest his feelings was a youth from the Village of the\nWinds.\n\nOne day he said to his old people: \u201cI am going courting.\u201d And they\nobserved that he made up a bundle of various precious things for women\u2019s\ndress and ornamentation--necklaces, snow-white buckskin moccasins and\nleggings, and embroidered skirts and mantles--and, taking his bundle on\nhis shoulders, he started off for the Village of the Yellow Rocks.\n\nWhen he reached the village he knew the home of the maiden by the beauty\nof the house. Among other houses it was alone of its kind. Attached to\nthe ladder was the cross-piece carved as it is in these days, but\ndepending from it was a fringe of black hair (not scalp-locks) with\nwhich they still ornament certain houses when they have sacred\nceremonies; and among this fringe were hung hollow stalactites from a\nsacred cave on the Colorado Chiquito, which sounded, when the wind blew\nthem together, like little bells. This fringe was full of them, so that\nwhen a stranger came to this important chief-priest\u2019s house he no sooner\ntouched the ladder-rung at the foot than the bells tinkled, and they\nknew some one was coming.\n\nAs he placed his foot on the lowermost rung of the ladder, _chi-la-li_\nsang the bells at the top.\n\nSaid the people within: \u201cSome one is coming.\u201d\n\nStep after step he went up, and still the bells made music at the top,\nand as he stepped over on the roof, _thud_, _thud_, his footsteps\nsounded as he walked along; and when he reached the door, those within\nsaid: \u201cThou comest?\u201d And he replied: \u201cI come. Draw me in\u201d; by which\nexpression he meant that he had brought with him a present to the\nfamily. Whenever a man has a bundle to hand down, it is the place of the\nwoman to take it; and that is called \u201cdrawing a man in,\u201d though she only\ntakes his bundle and he follows. In this case he said \u201cDraw me in,\u201d and\nthe maiden came to the top of the ladder and took the bundle and dropped\nit on the floor. They knew by the appearance of the bundle what the\nobject of the visit was.\n\nThe old man was sitting by the fireplace,--it was night-time,--and as\nthe stranger entered, said, \u201cThou hast come?\u201d\n\nThe young man answered: \u201cYes.\u201d\n\nSaid the old man: \u201cIt is not customary for a stranger to visit the\nhouse of a stranger without saying something of what may be in his\nthoughts.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is quite true,\u201d said the youth; \u201cI come thinking of this maiden,\nyour daughter. It has occurred to me that I might happily and without\nfear rest my thoughts and hopes on her; therefore I come.\u201d\n\nThe daughter brought forth food for the young man and bade him eat. He\nreached forth his hand and partook of the food. She sat down and took a\nmouthful or two, whereby they knew she was favorably disposed. She was\nfavorably disposed to all appearance, but not in reality. When he had\nfinished eating, she said: \u201cAs you like, my father. You are my father.\u201d\nShe answered to her own thoughts: \u201cYes, you have often reproached me for\nnot treating with more gentleness those who come courting me.\u201d\n\nFinally said the father: \u201cI give ye my blessing and sacred speech, my\nchildren. I will adopt thee as my child.\u201d[8]\n\n [8] This, it may be explained, is all that the marriage ceremony\n consists of.\n\n\u201cMy children,\u201d said the father, after a while, when he had smoked a\nlittle, \u201cthe stranger, now a son, has come a long distance and must be\nweary.\u201d\n\nSo the maiden led him to an upper chamber, and said: \u201cRest here; you are\nnot yet my husband. I would try you in the morning. Get up early, when\nthe deer are most plentiful, and go forth and slay me a fine one, and\nthen indeed shall we rest our hopes and thoughts on each other for\nlife.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the youth; and he retired to sleep, and in the\nmorning arose early. The maiden gave into his hands the food for the\nday; he caught up his bows and arrows and went forth into the forests\nand mountains, seeking for the deer. He found a superb track and\nfollowed it until it suddenly disappeared, and though he worked hard and\nfollowed it over and over again, he could find nothing. While the young\nman was out hunting and following the tracks for nothing, the young girl\nwent out, so as to be quite sure that none of her deer should get out;\nand what did she do? She went into the river and followed it against the\ncurrent, through the water beyond the village and where the marked rocks\nstand, up the ca\u00f1on to the place where her deer were gathered. They were\nall there, peaceful and contented. But there were no tracks of the girl;\nno one could follow where she went.\n\nThe young man hunted and hunted, and at night-time, all tired out and\nhungry, took his way back to the home of the maiden. She was there.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d said she, \u201cwhat good fortune today?\u201d\n\nAnd the young man with his face dragged down and his eyes not bright,\nanswered: \u201cI found no game today.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the girl, \u201cit is too bad; but under the circumstances we\ncannot rest our thoughts and hopes on each other for life.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I suppose not,\u201d said the young man.\n\n\u201cHere is your bundle,\u201d said the girl. She raised it very carefully and\nhanded it to him. He took it over his shoulder, and after all his weary\nwork went on his way home.\n\nThe very next day a young man named H\u00e1lona, when he heard of this,\nsaid: \u201cHa! ha! What a fool he was! He didn\u2019t take her enough presents;\nhe didn\u2019t please her. I am said to be a very pleasant fellow\u201d (he was a\nvery conceited young man); \u201cI will take her a bundle that will make\nthings all right.\u201d\n\nSo he put into a bundle everything that a woman could reasonably\nwant,--for he was a wealthy young man, and his bundle was very\nheavy,--put on his best dress, and with fine paint on his face started\nfor the home of the maiden. Finally, his foot touched the lowermost rung\nof the ladder; the stalactites went jingling above as he mounted, and\n_thud_ went his bundle as he dropped it on the roof.\n\n\u201cSomebody has come,\u201d said the people below. \u201cListen to that!\u201d\n\nThe maiden shrugged her shoulders and said: \u201cThou comest?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered the young man; \u201cdraw me in.\u201d\n\nSo she reached up and pulled the huge bundle down into the room, placing\nit on the floor, and the young man followed it down.\n\nSaid the old man, who was sitting by the fire, for it was night: \u201cThou\ncomest. Not thinking of nothing doth one stranger come to the house of\nanother. What may be thy thoughts?\u201d\n\nThe young man looked at the maiden and said to himself: \u201cWhat a\nmagnificent creature she is! She will be my wife, no fear that she will\nnot.\u201d Then said he aloud: \u201cI came, thinking of your daughter. I would\nrest my hopes and thoughts on her.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the old man. \u201cIt is the custom of our people and of\nall people, that they may possess dignity, that they may be the heads of\nhouseholds; therefore, young men and maidens marry and establish\nthemselves in certain houses. I have no objection. What dost thou think,\nmy daughter?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have no objection,\u201d said the daughter.\n\n\u201cAh, what did I tell you?\u201d said the youth to himself, and ate with a\ngreat deal of satisfaction the meal placed before him.\n\nThe father laid out the corn-husks and tobacco, and they had a smoke;\nthen he said to his daughter: \u201cThe stranger who is now my son has come a\nlong way, and should not be kept sitting up so long.\u201d\n\nAs the daughter led him to another room, he thought: \u201cWhat a gentle\ncreature she is! How softly she steps up the ladder.\u201d\n\nWhen the door was reached, she said: \u201cHere we will say good-night.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter?\u201d he asked.\n\nSaid she: \u201cI would like to know of my husband this much, that he is a\ngood hunter; that I may have plenty of food all my days, and plenty of\nbuckskins for my clothing. Therefore I must ask that in the morning you\ngo forth and hunt the deer, or bring home an antelope for me.\u201d\n\nThe young man quickly recovered himself, and said: \u201cIt is well,\u201d and lay\nhimself down to rest.\n\nSo the next morning he went out, and there was the maiden at the top of\nthe house watching him. He couldn\u2019t wait for daylight; he wanted the\nSun, his father, to rise before his time, and when the Sun did rise he\njumped out of bed, tied his quiver to his belt, took his bow in his\nhand, and, with a little luncheon the maiden had prepared for him,\nstarted off.\n\nAs he went down the river he saw the maiden was watching him from the\ntop of the house; so he started forward and ran until he was out of\nsight, to show how fine a runner he was and how good a hunter; because\nhe was reputed to be a very strong and active young man. He hunted and\nhunted, but did not find any deer, nor even any tracks.\n\nMeanwhile, the maiden went up the stream as before and kept watch of the\ncorral; and he fared as the other young man had fared. At night he came\nhome, not quite so downcast as the other had been, because he was a\nyoung man of more self-reliance.\n\nShe asked, as she met him: \u201cHaven\u2019t you got any deer today?\u201d\n\nHe answered: \u201cNo.\u201d\n\nShe said: \u201cI am sorry, but under the circumstances I don\u2019t see how we\ncan become husband and wife.\u201d\n\nSo he carried his bundle home.\n\nThe next day there was a young man in the City of Salt who heard of\nthis,--not all of it, but he heard that day after day young men were\ngoing to the home of this maiden to court her, and she turned them all\naway. He said: \u201cI dare say they didn\u2019t take enough with them.\u201d So he\nmade up two bundles and went to the home of the maiden, and he said to\nhimself: \u201cThis time it will be all right.\u201d\n\nWhen he arrived, much the same conversation was gone through as before\nwith the other young men, and the girl said, when she lighted him to the\ndoor of his room: \u201cMy young friend, if you will find a deer for me\ntomorrow I will become your wife and rest my hope only on you.\u201d\n\n\u201cMercy on me!\u201d thought the young man to himself, \u201cI have always been\ncalled a poor hunter. What shall I do?\u201d\n\nThe next morning he tried, but with the same results.\n\nNow, this girl was keeping the deer and antelope and other animals so\nlong closed up in the corral that the people in all the villages round\nabout were ready to die of hunger for meat. Still, for her own\ngratification she would keep these animals shut up.\n\nThe young man came back at evening, and she asked him if he had found a\ndeer for her.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said he, \u201cI could not even find the trail of one.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d she said, \u201cI am sorry, for your bundles are heavy.\u201d\n\nHe took them up and went home with them.\n\nFinally, this matter became so much talked about that the two small gods\non the top of Thunder Mountain, who lived with their grandmother where\nour sacrificial altar now stands, said: \u201cThere is something wrong here;\nwe will go and court this maiden.\u201d Now, these gods were extremely ugly\nin appearance when they chose to be--mere pigmies who never grew to\nman\u2019s stature. They were always boys in appearance, and their\ngrandmother was always crusty with them; but they concluded one night\nthat they would go the next day to woo this maiden.\n\nSaid one to the other: \u201cSuppose we go and try our luck with her.\u201d Said\nhe: \u201cWhen I look at you, you are very handsome.\u201d\n\nSaid the other to him: \u201cWhen I look at you, you are extremely handsome.\u201d\n\nThey were the ugliest beings in human form, but in reality were among\nthe most magnificent of men, having power to take any form they chose.\n\nSaid the elder one: \u201cGrandmother, you know how much talk there is about\nthis maiden in the Village of the Yellow Rocks. We have decided to go\nand court her.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou miserable, dirty, ugly little wretches! The idea of your going to\ncourt this maiden when she has refused the finest young men in the\nland!\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, we will go,\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t want you to go,\u201d replied she. \u201cYour names will be in the mouths\nof everybody; you will be laughed and jeered at.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will go,\u201d said they. And, without paying the slightest attention to\ntheir grandmother, they made up their bundle--a very miserable bundle it\nwas; the younger brother put in little rocks and sticks and bits of\nbuckskins and all sorts of worthless things--and they started off.\n\n\u201cWhat are you carrying this bundle for?\u201d asked \u00c1haiy\u00fata, the elder\nbrother.\n\n\u201cI am taking it as a present to the maiden,\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, the\nyounger one.\n\n\u201cShe doesn\u2019t want any such trash as that,\u201d said the other. \u201cThey have\ntaken very valuable presents to her before; we have nothing to take\nequal to what has been carried to her by others.\u201d\n\nThey decided to throw the bundle away altogether, and started out with\nabsolutely nothing but their bows and arrows.\n\nAs they proceeded they began to kill wood-rats, and continued until they\nhad slaughtered a large number and had a long string of them held up by\ntheir tails.\n\n\u201cThere!\u201d exclaimed the younger brother. \u201cThere is a fine present for the\ngirl.\u201d They knew perfectly well how things were, and were looking out\nfor the interests of their children in the villages round about.\n\n\u201cOh, my younger brother!\u201d said the elder. \u201cThese will not be acceptable\nto the girl at all; she would not have them in the house!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes, she would,\u201d said the younger; \u201cwe will take them along as a\npresent to her.\u201d\n\nSo they went on, and it was hardly noon when they arrived with their\nstrings of rats at the white cliffs on the southern side of the ca\u00f1on\nopposite the village where the maiden lived.\n\n\u201cHere, let us sit down in the shade of this cliff,\u201d said the elder\nbrother, \u201cfor it is not proper to go courting until evening.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no,\u201d said the younger, \u201clet us go along now. I am in a hurry! I am\nin a hurry!\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are a fool!\u201d said the elder brother; \u201cyou should not think of going\ncourting before evening. Stay here patiently.\u201d\n\nSo they sat down in the shade of the cliff. But the younger kept jumping\nup and running out to see how the sun was all the afternoon, and he\nwould go and smooth out his string of rats from time to time, and then\ngo and look at the sun again. Finally, when the sun was almost set, he\ncalled out: \u201cNow, come on!\u201d\n\n\u201cWait until it is wholly dark,\u201d said the other. \u201cYou never did have any\npatience, sense, or dignity about you.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not go now?\u201d asked the younger.\n\nSo they kept quarrelling, but the elder brother\u2019s wish prevailed until\nit was nearly dark, when they went on.\n\nThe elder brother began to get very bashful as they approached the\nvillage. \u201cI wonder which house it is,\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cThe one with the tallest ladder in front of it, of course,\u201d said the\nother.\n\nThen the elder brother said in a low voice: \u201cNow, do behave yourself; be\ndignified.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right!\u201d replied the younger.\n\nWhen they got to the ladder, the elder one said in a whisper: \u201cI don\u2019t\nwant to go up here; I don\u2019t want to go courting; let\u2019s go back.\u201d\n\n\u201cGo along up,\u201d said the younger.\n\n\u201cKeep still; be quiet!\u201d said the elder one; \u201cbe dignified!\u201d\n\nThey went up the ladder very carefully, so that there was not a tinkle\nfrom the bells. The elder brother hesitated, while the younger one went\non to the top, and over the edge of the house.\n\n\u201cNow!\u201d cried he.\n\n\u201cKeep still!\u201d whispered the other; and he gave the ladder a little shake\nas he went, and the bells tinkled at the top.\n\nThe people downstairs said: \u201cWho in the world is coming now?\u201d\n\nWhen they were both on the roof, the elder brother said: \u201cYou go down\nfirst.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will do nothing of the kind,\u201d said the other, \u201cyou are the elder.\u201d\n\nThe people downstairs called out: \u201cWho comes there?\u201d\n\n\u201cSee what you have done, you simpleton!\u201d said the elder brother. Then\nwith a great deal of dignity he walked down the ladder. The younger one\ncame tumbling down, carrying his string of rats.\n\n\u201cThrow it out, you fool; they don\u2019t want rats!\u201d said the elder one.\n\n\u201cYes, they do,\u201d replied the other. \u201cThe girl will want these; maybe she\nwill marry us on account of them!\u201d\n\nThe elder brother was terribly disturbed, but the other brought his rats\nin and laid them in the middle of the floor.\n\nThe father looked up, and said: \u201cYou come?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered the two odd ones.\n\n\u201cSit down,\u201d said the old man. So they sat down, and food was placed\nbefore them.\n\n\u201cIt seems,\u201d said the father, \u201cthat ye have met with luck today in\nhunting,\u201d as he cast his eyes on the string of rats.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the Two.\n\nSo the old priest went and got some prayer-meal, and, turning the faces\nof the rats toward the east, said a short prayer.\n\n\u201cWhat did I tell you?\u201d said the younger brother; \u201cthey like the presents\nwe have brought. Just see!\u201d\n\nPresently the old man said: \u201cIt is not customary for strangers to come\nto a house without something in mind.\u201d\n\n\u201cQuite so,\u201d said the younger brother.\n\n\u201cYes, my father,\u201d said the elder one; \u201cwe have come thinking of your\ndaughter. We understand that she has been wooed by various young men,\nand it has occurred to us that they did not bring the right kind of\npresents.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo we brought these,\u201d said the younger brother.\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the old man. \u201cIt is the custom for maidens and youths\nto marry. It rests with my daughter.\u201d\n\nSo he referred the matter to his daughter, and she said: \u201cAs you think,\nmy father. Which one?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, take us both!\u201d said the younger brother.\n\nThis was rather embarrassing to the maiden, but she knew she had a safe\nretreat. So when the father admonished her that it was time to lead the\ntwo young men up into the room where the others had been placed, she\ntold them the same story.\n\nThey said, \u201cIt is well.\u201d\n\nThey lay down, but instead of sleeping spent most of the night in\nspeculating as to the future.\n\n\u201cWhat a magnificent wife we will have,\u201d said one to the other.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t talk so loud; every one will hear you; you will be covered with\nshame!\u201d\n\nAfter a while they went to sleep; but were awake early the next morning.\nThe younger brother began to talk to the elder one, who said: \u201cKeep\nquiet; the people are not awake; don\u2019t disturb them!\u201d\n\nThe younger one said: \u201cThe sun is rising.\u201d\n\n\u201cKeep quiet,\u201d said the other, \u201cand when they are awake they will give us\nsome luncheon to take with us.\u201d\n\nBut the younger one jumped up and went rushing about the house, calling\nout: \u201cThe sun is rising; Get up!\u201d\n\nThe luncheon was provided, and when they started off the maiden went out\non the house-top and asked them which direction they would take.\n\nSaid they: \u201cWe will go over to the south and will get a deer before\nlong, although we are very small and may not meet with very good luck.\u201d\n\nSo they descended the ladder, and the maiden said to herself: \u201cUgly,\nmiserable little wretches; I will teach them to come courting me in this\nway!\u201d\n\nThe brothers went off to the cliffs, and, while pretending to be\nhunting, they ran back through the thickets near the house and waited to\nsee what the maiden would do.\n\nPretty soon she came out. They watched her and saw that she went down\nthe valley and presently ran into the river, leaving no trail behind,\nand took her course up the stream. They ran on ahead, and long before\nshe had ascended the river found the path leading out of it up the\nmountain. Following this path, they came to the corral, and, looking\nover it, they saw thousands of deer, mountain-sheep, antelope, and other\nanimals wandering around in the enclosure.\n\n\u201cHa! here is the place!\u201d the younger brother exclaimed. \u201cLet us go at\nthem now!\u201d\n\n\u201cKeep quiet! Be patient! Wait till the maiden comes,\u201d said the elder\none. \u201cIf we should happen to kill one of these deer before she comes,\nperhaps she has some magic power or knowledge by which she would deprive\nus of the fruits of our efforts.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, let us kill one now,\u201d said the other. But the elder one kept him\ncurbed until the maiden was climbing the cliff, when he could restrain\nhim no longer, and the youth pulled out his bow and let fly an arrow at\nthe largest deer. One arrow, and the deer fell to the ground, and when\nthe maiden appeared on the spot the deer was lying dead not far away.\n\nThe brothers said: \u201cYou come, do you? And here we are!\u201d\n\nShe looked at them, and her heart went down and became as heavy as a\nstone, and she did not answer.\n\n\u201cI say, you come!\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cYou come, do you?\u201d\n\nShe said, \u201cYes.\u201d Then said she to herself: \u201cWell, I suppose I shall have\nto submit, as I made the arrangement myself.\u201d Then she looked up and\nsaid: \u201cI see you have killed a deer.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, we killed one; didn\u2019t have any difficulty at all,\u201d said the\nyounger brother. \u201cCome, and help us skin him; we are so little and\nhungry and tired we can\u2019t do it. Come on.\u201d\n\nSo the girl went slowly forward, and in a dejected way helped them skin\nthe deer. Then they began to shoot more deer, and attempted to drag them\nout; but the men were so small they could not do it, and the girl had to\nhelp them. Then they cut up the meat and made it into bundles. She made\na large one for herself, and they made two little ones for themselves.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said they, wiping their brows, \u201cwe have done a good day\u2019s work,\nhaven\u2019t we?\u201d and they looked at the maiden with twinkling eyes.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said she; \u201cyou are great hunters.\u201d\n\n\u201cShall we go toward home?\u201d asked the younger brother of the maiden. \u201cIt\nwould be a shame for you to take such a bundle as that. I will take it\nfor you.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou little conceited wretch!\u201d cried the elder brother. \u201cHaven\u2019t I tried\nto restrain you?--and now you are going to bury yourself under a bundle\nof meat!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the younger brother, \u201cI can carry it.\u201d\n\nSo they propped the great bundle of meat against a tree. The elder\nbrother called on the maiden to help him; the younger one stooped down\nand received it on his back. They had no sooner let go of it than it\nfell on the ground and completely flattened the little man out.\n\n\u201cMercy! mercy! I am dying; help me out of here!\u201d cried he.\n\nSo they managed to roll the thing off, and he got up and rubbed his\nback, complaining bitterly (he was only making believe), and said: \u201cI\nshall have to take my little bundle.\u201d\n\nSo he shouldered his little bundle, and the maiden took the large one;\nbut before she started she turned to the animals and said, \u201cOh, my\nchildren! these many days, throwing the warm light of your favor upon\nme, you have rested contented to remain away from the sight of men. Now,\nhereafter you shall go forth whithersoever you will, that the earth may\nbe covered with your offspring, and men may once more have of your flesh\nto eat and of your pelts to wear.\u201d And away went the antelope, the deer,\nthe mountain-sheep, the elk, and the buffalo over all the land.\n\nThen the young Gods of War turned to the maiden and said: \u201cNow, shall we\ngo home?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cWell, I will take the lead,\u201d said the younger brother.\n\n\u201cGet behind where you belong,\u201d said the other; \u201cI will precede the\nparty.\u201d So the elder brother went first, the maiden came next, and the\nyounger brother followed behind, with his little bag of meat.\n\nSo they went home, and the maiden placed the meat to dry in the upper\nrooms of the house.\n\nWhile she was doing this, it was yet early in the day. The two brothers\nwere sitting together, and whispering: \u201cAnd what will she say for\nherself now?\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t see what she can say for herself.\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, nothing can she say for herself.\u201d\n\nAnd when the meat was all packed away in the house and the sun had set,\nthey sat by themselves talking this over: \u201cWhat can she say for\nherself?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing whatever; nothing remains to be done.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is quite so,\u201d said they, as they went in to the evening meal and\nsat with the family to eat it.\n\nFinally the maiden said: \u201cWith all your hunting and the labors of the\nday, you must be very weary. Where you slept last night you will find a\nresting-place. Go and rest yourselves. I cannot consent to marry you,\nbecause you have not yet shown yourselves capable of taking care of and\ndressing the buckskins, as well as of killing deer and antelope and such\nanimals. For a long time buckskins have been accumulating in the upper\nroom. I have no brothers to soften and scrape them; therefore, if you\nTwo will take the hair off from all my buckskins tomorrow before sunset,\nand scrape the underside so that they will be thin and soft, I will\nconsent to be the wife of one of you, or both.\u201d\n\nAnd they said: \u201cOh mercy, it is too bad!\u201d\n\n\u201cWe can never do it,\u201d said the younger brother.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t suppose we can; but we can try,\u201d said the elder.\n\nSo they lay down.\n\n\u201cLet us take things in time,\u201d said the elder one, after he had thought\nof it. And they jumped up and called to the maiden: \u201cWhere are those\nbuckskins?\u201d\n\n\u201cThey are in the upper room,\u201d said she.\n\nShe showed them the way to the upper room. It was packed to the rafters\nwith buckskins. They began to make big bales of these and then took them\ndown to the river. When they got them all down there they said: \u201cHow in\nthe world can we scrape so many skins? There are more here than we can\nclean in a year.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you what,\u201d said the younger brother; \u201cwe will stow away\nsome in the crevices of the rocks, and get rid of them in that way.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlways hasty, always hasty,\u201d said the elder. \u201cDo you suppose that woman\nput those skins away without counting every one of them? We can\u2019t do\nthat.\u201d\n\nThey spread them out in the water that they might soak all night, and\nbuilt a little dam so they would not float away. While they were thus\nengaged they heard some one talking, so they pricked up their ears to\nlisten.\n\nNow, the hill that stands by the side across from the Village of the\nYellow Rocks was, and still is, a favorite home of the Field-mice. They\nare very prolific, and have to provide great bundles of wool for their\nfamilies. But in the days of the ancients they were terrible gamblers\nand were all the time betting away their nests, and the young Mice being\nperfectly bare, with no wool on them at all, died of cold. And still\nthey kept on betting, making little figures of nests and betting these\naway against the time when they should have more. It was these Mice\nwhich the two gods overheard.\n\nSaid the younger brother: \u201cListen to that! Who is talking?\u201d\n\n\u201cSome one is betting. Let us go nearer.\u201d\n\nThey went across the river and listened, and heard the tiny little\nvoices calling out and shouting.\n\n\u201cLet us go in,\u201d said the younger brother. And he placed his foot in the\nhole and descended, followed by the other. They found there an enormous\nvillage of Field-mice in human form, their clothes, in the shape of\nMice, hanging over the sides of the house. Some had their clothing all\noff down to their waists, and were betting as hard as they could and\ntalking with one another.\n\nAs soon as the two brothers entered, they said: \u201cWho comes?\u201d\n\nThe Two answered: \u201cWe come.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome in, come in,\u201d cried the Mice,--they were not very polite. \u201cSit\ndown and have a game. We have not anything to bet just now, but if you\ntrust us we will bet with you.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat had you in mind in coming?\u201d said an old Field-mouse with a broken\ntail.\n\nThey answered that they had come because they heard voices. Then they\ntold their story.\n\n\u201cWhat is this you have to do?\u201d asked the Mice.\n\n\u201cTo clean all the hair off those pelts tomorrow.\u201d\n\nThe Mice looked around at one another; their eyes fairly sparkled and\nburned.\n\n\u201cNow, then, we will help you if you will promise us something,\u201d said\nthey; \u201cbut we want your solemn promise.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is that?\u201d asked the brothers.\n\n\u201cThat you will give us all the hair.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d said the brothers; \u201cwe will be glad to get rid of it.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said they; \u201cwhere are the skins?\u201d Then they all began to\npour out of the place, and they were so numerous that it was like water,\nwhen the rain is falling hard, running over a rock.\n\nWhen they had all run out the two War-gods drew the skins on the bank,\nand the Field-mice went to nibbling the hair and cleaning off the\nunderside. They made up little bundles of the flesh from the skins for\ntheir food, and great parcels of the hair. Finally they said: \u201cMay we\nhave them all?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the brothers, \u201cwe must have eight reserved, four for each, so\nthat we will be hard at work all day tomorrow.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the Mice, \u201cwe can\u2019t consent to leaving even so many, unless\nyou promise that you will gather up all the hair and put it somewhere so\nthat we can get it.\u201d\n\nThe Two promised that, and said: \u201cBe sure to leave eight skins, will\nyou? and we will go to bed and rest ourselves.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right, all right!\u201d responded the Field-mice.\n\nSo the brothers climbed up the hill to the town, and up the ladder, and\nslept in their room.\n\nThe next morning the girl said: \u201cNow, remember, you will have to clean\nevery skin and make it soft and white.\u201d\n\nSo they went down to the river and started to work. The girl had said to\nthem that at midday she would go down and see how they were getting\nalong. They were at work nearly all the forenoon on the skins. While the\nelder brother shaved the hair off, the younger one scraped them thin and\nsoftened them.\n\nWhen the maiden came at noon, she said: \u201cHow are you getting along?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe have finished four and are at work on the fifth.\u201d\n\n\u201cRemember,\u201d said she, \u201cyou must finish all of them today or I shall have\nto send you home.\u201d\n\nSo they worked away until a little before the sun set, when she appeared\nagain. They had just finished the last. The Field-mice had carefully\ndressed all the others (they did it better than the men), and there they\nlay spread out on the sands like a great field of something growing,\nonly white.\n\nWhen the maiden came down she was perfectly overcome; she looked and\nlooked and counted and recounted. She found them all there. Then she\ngot a long pole and fished in the water, but there were none.\n\nSaid she: \u201cYes, you shall be my husbands; I shall have to submit.\u201d\n\nShe went home with them, and for a long time they all lived together,\nthe woman with her two husbands. They managed to get along very\ncomfortably, and the two brothers didn\u2019t quarrel any more than they had\ndone before.\n\nFinally, there were born little twin boys, exactly like their fathers,\nwho were also twins, although one was called the elder and the other the\nyounger.\n\nAfter a time the younger brother said: \u201cNow, let us go home to our\ngrandmother. People always go home to their own houses and take their\nfamilies with them.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the elder one, \u201cyou must remember that we have been only\npretending to be human beings. It would not do to take the maiden home\nwith us.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the other; \u201cI want her to go with us. Our grandmother kept\nmaking fun of us; called us little, miserable, wretched creatures. I\nwant to show her that we amount to something!\u201d\n\nThe elder brother could not get the younger one to leave the wife\nbehind, and like a dutiful wife she said: \u201cI will go with you.\u201d They\nmade up their bundles and started out. It was a very hot day, and when\nthey had climbed nearly to the top of Thunder Mountain, the younger\nbrother said: \u201cAhem! I am tired. Let us sit down and rest.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt will not do,\u201d said the elder brother. \u201cYou know very well it will\nnot do to sit down; our father, the Sun, has forbidden that we should be\namong mortals. It will not do.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes, it will; we must sit down here,\u201d said the younger brother; and\nagain his wish prevailed and they sat down.\n\nAt midday the Sun stood still in the sky, and looked down and saw this\nbeautiful woman, and by the power of his withdrawing rays quickly\nsnatched her from them while they were sitting there talking, she\ncarrying her little children.\n\nThe brothers looked around and said: \u201cWhere is our wife?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, there she is,\u201d cried the younger; \u201cI will shoot her.\u201d\n\n\u201cShoot your wife!\u201d cried the elder brother. \u201cNo, let her go! Serves you\nright!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said the younger, \u201cI will shoot her!\u201d He looked up and drew his\narrow, and as his aim was absolutely unerring, _swish_ went the arrow\ndirectly to her, and she was killed. The power of life by which the Sun\nwas drawing her up was gone, the thread was cut, and she fell over and\nover and struck the earth.\n\nThe two little children were so very small, and their bones so soft,\nthat the fall did not hurt them much. They fell on the soft bank, and\nrolled and rolled down the hill, and the younger brother ran forward and\ncaught them up in his arms, crying: \u201cOh, my little children!\u201d and\nbrought them to the elder brother, who said: \u201cNow, what can be done\nwith these little babies, with no mother, no food?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will take them home to grandmother,\u201d said the younger brother.\n\n\u201cYour grandmother cannot take care of these babies,\u201d said the elder\nbrother.\n\n\u201cYes, she can, of course,\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cCome on, come on!\nI didn\u2019t want to lose my wife and children, too; I thought I must still\nhave the children; that is the reason why I shot her.\u201d\n\nSo one of them took one of the children, and the other one took the\nother, and they carried them up to the top of Thunder Mountain.\n\n\u201cNow, then,\u201d said the elder brother, \u201cwe went off to marry; we come home\nwith no wife and two little children and with nothing to feed them.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, grandmother!\u201d called out the younger brother.\n\nThe old woman hadn\u2019t heard them for many a day, for many a month, even\nfor years. She looked out and said: \u201cMy grandchildren are coming,\u201d and\nshe called to them: \u201cI am so glad you have come!\u201d\n\n\u201cHere, see what we have,\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cHere are your\ngrandchildren. Come and take them!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, you miserable boy, you are always doing something foolish; where is\nyour wife?\u201d asked the grandmother.\n\n\u201cOh, I shot her!\u201d was the response.\n\n\u201cWhy did you do that?\u201d\n\n\u201cI didn\u2019t want my father, the Sun, to take them away with my wife. I\nknew you would not care anything about my wife, but I knew you would be\nvery fond of the grandchildren. Here they are.\u201d\n\nBut she wouldn\u2019t look at all. So the younger brother drew his face down,\nand taking the poor little children in his arms said: \u201cYou unnatural\ngrandmother, you! Here are two nice little grandchildren for you!\u201d\n\nShe said: \u201cHow shall I feed them? or what shall I do with them?\u201d\n\nHe replied: \u201cOh, take care of them, take care of them!\u201d\n\nShe took a good look at them, and became a true grandmother. She ran and\nclasped the little ones, crying out: \u201cLet me take you away from these\nmiserable children of mine!\u201d She made some beds of sand for them, as\nZu\u00f1i mothers do today, got some soft skins for them to lie on, and fed\nthem with a kind of milk made of corn toasted and ground and mixed with\nwater; so that they gradually enlarged and grew up to be nice children.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients, and has been told to us in\nthese days, that even the most cruel and heartless of the gods do these\nthings. Even they took these helpless children to their grandmother, and\nshe succored them and brought them up to the time of reason. Therefore\nit is the duty of those who find helpless babies or children, inasmuch\nas they are not so cruel and terrible as were the Gods of War,--not\nnearly,--surely it is their duty to take those children and succor and\nbring them up to the time of reason, when they can care for themselves.\nThat is why our people, when children have been abandoned, provide and\ncare for them as if they were their own.\n\nThus long is my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FOSTER-CHILD OF THE DEER\n\n\nOnce, long, long ago, at H\u00e1wikuh, there lived a maiden most beautiful.\nIn her earlier years her father, who was a great priest, had devoted her\nto sacred things, and therefore he kept her always in the house secure\nfrom the gaze of all men, and thus she grew.\n\nShe was so beautiful that when the Sun looked down along one of the\nstraight beams of his own light, if one of those beams chanced to pass\nthrough a chink in the roof, the sky-hole, or the windows of the upper\npart of the maiden\u2019s room, he beheld her and wondered at her rare\nbeauty, unable to compare it with anything he saw in his great journeys\nround about the worlds. Thus, as the maiden grew apace and became a\nyoung woman, the Sun loved her exceedingly, and as time went on he\nbecame so enamored of her that he descended to earth and entered on one\nof his own beams of light into her apartment, so that suddenly, while\nshe was sitting one noon-day weaving pretty baskets, there stood before\nher a glorious youth, gloriously dressed. It was the Sun-father. He\nlooked upon her gently and lovingly; she looked upon him not fearfully:\nand so it came about that she loved him and he loved her, and he won her\nto be his wife. And many were the days in which he visited her and dwelt\nwith her for a space at noon-time; but as she was alone mostly, or as\nshe kept sitting weaving her trays when any one of the family entered\nher apartment, no one suspected this.\n\n [Illustration: A BURRO TRAIN IN A ZU\u00d1I STREET\n Photo by Hillers]\n\nNow, as she knew that she had been devoted to sacred things, and that if\nshe explained how it was that she was a mother she would not be\nbelieved, she was greatly exercised in mind and heart. She therefore\ndecided that when her child was born she would put it away from her.\n\nWhen the time came, the child one night was born. She carefully wrapped\nthe little baby boy in some soft cotton-wool, and in the middle of the\nnight stole out softly over the roof-tops, and, silently descending,\nlaid the child on the sheltered side of a heap of refuse near the little\nstream that flows by H\u00e1wikuh, in the valley below. Then, mourning as a\nmother will mourn for her offspring, she returned to her room and lay\nherself down, poor thing, to rest.\n\nAs daylight was breaking in the east, and the hills and the valleys were\ncoming forth one after another from the shadows of night, a Deer with\nher two little brightly-speckled fawns descended from the hills to the\nsouth across the valley, with ears and eyes alert, and stopped at the\nstream to drink. While drinking they were startled by an infant\u2019s cry,\nand, looking up, they saw dust and cotton-wool and other things flying\nabout in the air, almost as if a little whirlwind were blowing on the\nsite of the refuse-heap where the child had been laid. It was the child,\nwho, waking and finding itself alone, hungry, and cold, was crying and\nthrowing its little hands about.\n\n\u201cBless my delight!\u201d cried the Deer to her fawns. \u201cI have this day found\na waif, a child, and though it be human it shall be mine; for, see, my\nchildren, I love you so much that surely I could love another.\u201d\n\nThereupon she approached the little infant, and breathed her warm breath\nupon it and caressed it until it became quiet, and then after wrapping\nabout it the cotton-wool, she gently lifted it on her broad horns, and,\nturning, carried it steadily away toward the south, followed on either\nside by her children, who kept crying out \u201cNeh! neh!\u201d in their delight.\n\nThe home of this old Deer and her little ones, where all her children\nhad been born for years, was south of H\u00e1wikuh, in the valley that turns\noff among the ledges of rocks near the little spring called P\u00f3shaan.\nThere, in the shelter of a clump of pi\u00f1on and cedar trees, was a soft\nand warm retreat, winter and summer, and this was the lair of the Deer\nand her young.\n\nThe Deer was no less delighted than surprised next morning to find that\nthe infant had grown apace, for she had suckled it with her own milk,\nand that before the declining of the sun it was already creeping about.\nAnd greater was her surprise and delight, as day succeeded day, to find\nthat the child grew even more swiftly than grow the children of the\nDeer. Behold! on the evening of the fourth day it was running about and\nplaying with its foster brother and sister. Nor was it slow of foot,\neven as compared with those little Deer. Behold! yet greater cause for\nwonder, on the eighth day it was a youth fair to look upon--looking upon\nitself and seeing that it had no clothing, and wondering why it was not\nclothed, like its brother and sister, in soft warm hair with pretty\nspots upon it.\n\nAs time went on, this little foster-child of the Deer (it must always be\nremembered that it was the offspring of the Sun-father himself), in\nplaying with his brother and sister, and in his runnings about, grew\nwondrously strong, and even swifter of foot than the Deer themselves,\nand learned the language of the Deer and all their ways.\n\nWhen he had become perfected in all that a Deer should know, the\nDeer-mother led him forth into the wilds and made him acquainted with\nthe great herd to which she belonged. They were exceedingly happy with\nthis addition to their number; much they loved him, and so sagacious was\nthe youth that he soon became the leader of the Deer of the H\u00e1wikuh\ncountry.\n\nWhen these Deer and the Antelopes were out on the mesas ranging to and\nfro, there at their head ran the swift youth. The soles of his feet\nbecame as hard as the hoofs of the Deer, the skin of his person strong\nand dark, the hair of his head long and waving and as soft as the hair\non the sides of the Deer themselves.\n\nIt chanced one morning, late that summer, that the uncle of the maiden\nwho had cast away her child went out hunting, and he took his way\nsouthward past P\u00f3shaan, the lair of the Deer-mother and her\nfoster-child. As he traversed the borders of the great mesas that lie\nbeyond, he saw a vast herd of Deer gathered, as people gather in\ncouncil. They were quiet and seemed to be listening intently to some one\nin their midst. The hunter stole along carefully on hands and knees,\ntwisting himself among the bushes until he came nearer; and what was his\nwonder when he beheld, in the midst of the Deer, a splendid youth, broad\nof shoulder, tall and strong of limb, sitting nude and graceful on the\nground, and the old Deer and the young seemed to be paying attention to\nwhat he was saying. The hunter rubbed his eyes and looked again; and\nagain he looked, shading his eyes with his hands. Then he elevated\nhimself to peer yet more closely, and the sharp eyes of the youth\ndiscovered him. With a shout he lifted himself to his feet and sped away\nlike the wind, followed by the whole herd, their hoofs thundering, and\nsoon they were all out of sight.\n\nThe hunter dropped his bow and stood there musing; then picking it up,\nhe turned himself about and ran toward H\u00e1wikuh as fast as he could. When\nhe arrived he related to the father of the girl what he had seen. The\nold priest summoned his hunters and warriors and bade the uncle repeat\nthe story. Many there were who said: \u201cYou have seen an apparition, and\nof evil omen to your family, alas! alas!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said he, \u201cI looked, and again I looked, and yet again, and again,\nand I avow to you that what I saw was as plain and as mortal as the Deer\nthemselves.\u201d\n\nConvinced at last, the council decided to form a grand hunt, and word\nwas given from the house-tops that on the fourth day from that day a\nhunt should be undertaken--that the southern mesa should be surrounded,\nand that the people should gather in from all sides and encompass the\nherd there, in order that this wonderful youth should not escape being\nseen, or possibly captured.\n\nNow, when the Deer had gone to a safe distance they slackened their pace\nand called to their leader not to fear. And the old foster-mother of the\nyouth for the first time related to him, as she had related to them long\nago, that he was the child of mortals, telling how she had found him.\n\nThe youth sat with his head bowed, thinking of these things. Then he\nraised his head proudly, and said: \u201cWhat though I be the child of\nmortals, they have not loved me: they have cast me from their midst,\ntherefore will I be faithful to thee alone.\u201d\n\nBut the old Deer-mother said to him: \u201cHush, my child! Thou art but a\nmortal, and though thou might\u2019st live on the roots of the trees and the\nbushes and plants that mature in autumn, yet surely in the winter time\nthou could\u2019st not live, for my supply of milk will be withholden, and\nthe fruits and the nuts will all be gone.\u201d\n\nAnd the older members of that large herd gathered round and repeated\nwhat she had been saying. And they said: \u201cWe are aware that we shall be\nhunted now, as is the invariable custom when our herd has been\ndiscovered, on the fourth day from the day on which we were first seen.\nAmongst the people who come there will be, no doubt, those who will seek\nyou; and you must not endeavor to escape. Even we ourselves are\naccustomed to give up our lives to the brave hunters among this people,\nfor many of them are sacred of thought, sacred of heart, and make due\nsacrifices unto us, that our lives in other form may be spared\nunceasingly.\u201d\n\nA splendid Deer rose from the midst of the herd, and, coming forward,\nlaid his cheek on the cheek of the boy, and said: \u201cYet we love you, but\nwe must now part from you. And, in order that you may be like unto other\nmortals, only exceeding them, accompany me to the Land of the Souls of\nMen, where sit in council the Gods of the Sacred Dance and Drama, the\nGods of the Spirit World.\u201d\n\nTo all this the youth, being convinced, agreed. And on that same day the\nDeer who had spoken set forward, the swift youth running by his side,\ntoward the Lake of the Dead. On and on they sped, and as night was\nfalling they came to the borders of that lake, and the lights were\nshining over its middle and the Gardens of the Sacred Dance. And the old\nDrama-woman and the old Drama-man were walking on its shores, back and\nforth, calling across to each other.\n\nAs the Deer neared the shore of the lake, he turned and said to his\ncompanion: \u201cStep in boldly with me. Ladders of rushes will rise to\nreceive you, and down underneath the waters into the great Halls of the\nDead and of the Sacred Dance we will be borne gently and swiftly.\u201d\n\nThen they stepped into the lake. Brighter and lighter it grew. Great\nladders of rushes and flags lifted themselves from the water, and upon\nthem the Deer and his companion were borne downward into halls of\nsplendor, lighted by many lights and fires. And in the largest chamber\nthe gods were sitting in council silently. P\u00e1utiwa, the Sun-priest of\nthe Sacred Drama (_K\u00e2k\u00e2_), Sh\u00falawitsi (the God of Fire), with his torch\nof ever-living flame, and many others were there; and when the strangers\narrived they greeted and were greeted, and were given a place in the\nlight of the central fire. And in through the doors of the west and the\nnorth and the east and the south filed long rows of sacred dancers,\nthose who had passed through the Lake of the Dead, clad in cotton\nmantles, white as the daylight, finely embroidered, decked with many a\ntreasure shell and turquoise stone. These performed their sacred rites,\nto the delight of the gods and the wonder of the Deer and his\nfoster-brother.\n\nAnd when the dancers had retired, P\u00e1utiwa, the Sun-priest of the Sacred\nDance, arose, and said: \u201cWhat would\u2019st thou?\u201d--though he knew full well\nbeforehand. \u201cWhat would\u2019st thou, oh, Deer of the forest mesas, with thy\ncompanion, thy foster-brother; for not thinking of nothing would one\nvisit the home of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_.\u201d\n\nThen the Deer lifted his head and told his story.\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the gods.\n\n\u201cAppear, my faithful one,\u201d said P\u00e1utiwa to Sh\u00falawitsi. And Sh\u00falawitsi\nappeared and waved his flame around the youth, so that he became\nconvinced of his mortal origin and of his dependence upon food prepared\nby fire. Then the gods who speak the speech of men gathered around and\nbreathed upon the youth, and touched to his lips moisture from their own\nmouths, and touched the portals of his ears with oil from their own\nears, and thus was the youth made acquainted with both the speech and\nthe understanding of the speech of mortal man. Then the gods called out,\nand there were brought before them fine garments of white cotton\nembroidered in many colors, rare necklaces of sacred shell with many\nturquoises and coral-like stones and shells strung in their midst, and\nall that the most beautifully clad of our ancients could have glorified\ntheir appearance with. Such things they brought forth, and, making them\ninto a bundle, laid them at the feet of the youth. Then they said: \u201cOh,\nyouth, oh, brother and father, since thou art the child of the Sun, who\nis the father of us all, go forth with thy foster-brother to thy last\nmeeting-place with him and with his people; and when on the day after\nthe morrow hunters shall gather from around thy country, some of ye, oh,\nDeer,\u201d said he, turning to the Deer, \u201cyield thyselves up that ye may die\nas must thy kind ever continue to die, for the sake of this thy\nbrother.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will lead them,\u201d simply replied the Deer. \u201cThanks.\u201d\n\nAnd P\u00e1utiwa continued: \u201cHere full soon wilt thou be gathered in our\nmidst, or with the winds and the mists of the air at night-time wilt\nsport, ever-living. Go ye forth, then, carrying this bundle, and, as ye\nbest know how, prepare this our father and child for his reception among\nmen. And, O son and father,\u201d continued the priest-god, turning to the\nyouth, \u201cFear not! Happy wilt thou be in the days to come, and treasured\namong men. Hence thy birth. Return with the Deer and do as thou art told\nto do. Thy uncle, leading his priest-youths, will be foremost in the\nhunt. He will pursue thee and thy foster-mother. Lead him far away; and\nwhen thou hast so led him, cease running and turn and wait, and\npeacefully go home whither he guides thee.\u201d\n\nThe sounds of the Sacred Dance came in from the outer apartments, and\nthe youth and the Deer, taking their bundle, departed. More quickly than\nthey had come they sped away; and on the morning when the hunters of\nH\u00e1wikuh were setting forth, the Deer gathered themselves in a vast herd\non the southern mesa, and they circled about the youth and instructed\nhim how to unloose the bundle he had brought. Then closer and closer\ncame the Deer to the youth and bade him stand in his nakedness, and they\nran swiftly about him, breathing fierce, moist breaths until hot steam\nenveloped him and bathed him from head to foot, so that he was purified,\nand his skin was softened, and his hair hung down in a smooth yet waving\nmass at the back of his head. Then the youth put on the costume, one\narticle after another, he having seen them worn by the Gods of the\nSacred Dance, and by the dancers; and into his hair at the back, under\nthe band which he placed round his temples, he thrust the glowing\nfeathers of the macaw which had been given him. Then, seeing that there\nwas still one article left,--a little string of conical shells,--he\nasked what that was for; and the Deer told him to tie it about his knee.\n\nThe Deer gathered around him once more, and the old chief said: \u201cWho\namong ye are willing to die?\u201d And, as if it were a festive occasion to\nwhich they were going, many a fine Deer bounded forth, striving for the\nplace of those who were to die, until a large number were gathered,\nfearless and ready. Then the Deer began to move.\n\nSoon there was an alarm. In the north and the west and the south and the\neast there was cause for alarm. And the Deer began to scatter, and then\nto assemble and scatter again. At last the hunters with drawn bows came\nrunning in, and soon their arrows were flying in the midst of those who\nwere devoted, and Deer after Deer fell, pierced to the heart or other\nvital part.\n\nAt last but few were left,--amongst them the kind old Deer-mother and\nher two children; and, taking the lead, the glorious youth, although\nencumbered by his new dress, sped forth with them. They ran and ran, the\nfleetest of the tribe of H\u00e1wikuh pursuing them; but all save the uncle\nand his brave sons were soon left far behind. The youth\u2019s foster-brother\nwas soon slain, and the youth, growing angry, turned about; then\nbethinking himself of the words of the gods, he sped away again. So his\nfoster-sister, too, was killed; but he kept on, his old mother alone\nrunning behind him. At last the uncle and his sons overtook the old\nmother, and they merely caught her and turned her away, saying:\n\u201cFaithful to the last she has been to this youth.\u201d Then they renewed the\nchase for the youth; and he at last, pretending weariness, faced about\nand stood like a stag at bay. As soon as they approached, he dropped his\narms and lowered his head. Then he said: \u201cOh, my uncle\u201d (for the gods\nhad told who would find him)--\u201cOh, my uncle, what wouldst thou? Thou\nhast killed my brothers and sisters; what wouldst thou with me?\u201d\n\nThe old man stopped and gazed at the youth in wonder and admiration of\nhis fine appearance and beautiful apparel. Then he said: \u201cWhy dost thou\ncall me uncle?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause, verily,\u201d replied the youth, \u201cthou art my uncle, and thy niece,\nmy maiden-mother, gave birth to me and cast me away upon a dust-heap;\nand then my noble Deer found me and nourished me and cherished me.\u201d\n\nThe uncle and his sons gazed still with wonder. Then they thought they\nsaw in the youth\u2019s clear eyes and his soft, oval face a likeness to the\nmother, and they said: \u201cVerily, this which he says is true.\u201d Then they\nturned about and took him by the hands gently and led him toward\nH\u00e1wikuh, while one of them sped forward to test the truth of his\nutterances.\n\nWhen the messenger arrived at H\u00e1wikuh he took his way straight to the\nhouse of the priest, and told him what he had heard. The priest in anger\nsummoned the maiden.\n\n\u201cOh, my child,\u201d said he, \u201chast thou done this thing which we are told\nthou hast done?\u201d And he related what he had been told.\n\n\u201cNay, no such thing have I done,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cYea, but thou hast, oh, unnatural mother! And who was the father?\u201d\ndemanded the old priest with great severity.\n\nThen the maiden, thinking of her Sun-lover, bowed her head in her lap\nand rocked herself to and fro, and cried sorely. And then she said:\n\u201cYea, it is true; so true that I feared thy wrath, oh, my father! I\nfeared thy shame, oh, my mother! and what could I do?\u201d Then she told of\nher lover, the Sun,--with tears she told it, and she cried out: \u201cBring\nback my child that I may nurse him and love but him alone, and see him\nthe father of children!\u201d\n\nBy this time the hunters arrived, some bringing game, but others\nbringing in their midst this wondrous youth, on whom each man and maiden\nin H\u00e1wikuh gazed with delight and admiration.\n\nThey took him to the home of his priest-grandfather; and as though he\nknew the way he entered the apartment of his mother, and she, rising and\nopening wide her arms, threw herself on his breast and cried and cried.\nAnd he laid his hand on her head, and said: \u201cOh, mother, weep not, for I\nhave come to thee, and I will cherish thee.\u201d\n\nSo was the foster-child of the Deer restored to his mother and his\npeople.\n\nWondrously wise in the ways of the Deer and their language was he--so\nmuch so that, seeing them, he understood them. This youth made little\nado of hunting, for he knew that he could pay those rites and attentions\nto the Deer that were most acceptable, and made them glad of death at\nthe hand of the hunter. And ere long, so great was his knowledge and\nsuccess, and his preciousness in the eyes of the Master of Life, that by\nhis will and his arm alone the tribe of H\u00e1wikuh was fed and was clad in\nbuckskins.\n\nA rare and beautiful maiden he married, and most happy was he with her.\n\nIt was his custom to go forth early in the morning, when the Deer came\ndown to drink or stretch themselves and walk abroad and crop the grass;\nand, taking his bow and quiver of arrows, he would go to a distant mesa,\nand, calling the Deer around him, and following them as swiftly as they\nran, he would strike them down in great numbers, and, returning, say to\nhis people: \u201cGo and bring in my game, giving me only parts of what I\nhave slain and taking the rest yourselves.\u201d\n\nSo you can readily see how he and his people became the greatest people\nof H\u00e1wikuh. Nor is it marvellous that the sorcerers of that tribe should\nhave grown envious of his prosperity, and sought to diminish it in many\nways, wherein they failed.\n\nAt last one night the Master of Sorcerers in secret places raised his\nvoice and cried: \u201c_Weh-h-h-h! Weh-h-h-h-h-h!_\u201d And round about him\npresently gathered all the sorcerers of the place, and they entered into\na deep cavern, large and lighted by green, glowing fires, and there,\nstaring at each other, they devised means to destroy this splendid\nyouth, the child of the Sun.\n\nOne of their number stood forth and said: \u201cI will destroy him in his own\nvocation. He is a hunter, and the Coyote loves well to follow the\nhunter.\u201d His words were received with acclamation, and the youth who had\noffered himself sped forth in the night to prepare, by incantation and\nwith his infernal appliances, a disguise for himself.\n\nOn the next morning, when the youth went forth to hunt, an old Coyote\nsneaked behind him after he reached the mesas, and, following\nstealthily, waited his throwing down of the Deer; and when the youth had\ncalled and killed a number of Deer and sat down to rest on a fallen\ntree, the Coyote sneaked into sight. The youth, looking at him, merely\nthought: \u201cHe seeks the blood of my slain Deer,\u201d and he went on with his\nprayers and sacrifices to the dead of the Deer. But soon, stiffening his\nlimbs, the Coyote swiftly scudded across the open, and, with a puff from\nhis mouth and nostrils like a sneeze toward the youth, threw himself\nagainst him and arose a man,--the same man who had offered his services\nin the council of the wizards--while the poor youth, falling over, ran\naway, a human being still in heart and mind, but in form a coyote.\n\nOff to the southward he wandered, his tail dragging in the dust; and\ngrowing hungry he had naught to eat; and cold on the sides of the mesas\nhe passed the night, and on the following morning wandered still, until\nat last, very hungry, he was fain even to nip the blades of grass and\neat the berries of the juniper. Thus he became ill and worn; and one\nnight as he was seeking a warm place to lay him down and die, he saw a\nlittle red light glowing from the top of a hillock. Toward this light he\ntook his way, and when he came near he saw that it was shining up\nthrough the sky-hole of someone\u2019s house. He peered over the edge and saw\nan old Badger with his grizzly wife, sitting before a fire, not in the\nform of a badger but in the form of a little man, his badger-skin\nhanging beside him.\n\nThen the youth said to himself: \u201cI will cast myself down into their\nhouse, thus showing them my miserable condition.\u201d And as he tried to\nstep down the ladder, he fell, _teng_, on the floor before them.\n\nThe Badgers were disgusted. They grabbed the Coyote, and hauling him up\nthe ladder, threw him into the plain, where, _toonoo_, he fell far away\nand swooned from loss of breath. When he recovered his thoughts he again\nturned toward the glowing sky-hole, and, crawling feebly back, threw\nhimself down into the room again. Again he was thrown out, but this time\nthe Badger said: \u201cIt is marvellously strange that this Coyote, the\nmiserable fellow, should insist on coming back, and coming back.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have heard,\u201d said the little old Badger-woman, \u201cthat our glorious\nbeloved youth of H\u00e1wikuh was changed some time ago into a Coyote. It may\nbe he. Let us see when he comes again if it be he. For the love of\nmercy, let us see!\u201d\n\nEre long the youth again tried to clamber down the ladder, and fell with\na thud on the floor before them. A long time he lay there senseless, but\nat last opened his eyes and looked about. The Badgers eagerly asked if\nhe were the same who had been changed into a Coyote, or condemned to\ninhabit the form of one. The youth could only move his head in\nacquiescence.\n\nThen the Badgers hastily gathered an emetic and set it to boil, and when\nready they poured the fluid down the throat of the seeming Coyote, and\ntenderly held him and pitied him. Then they laid him before the fire to\nwarm him. Then the old Badger, looking about in some of his burrows,\nfound a sacred rock crystal, and heating it to glowing heat in the fire,\nhe seared the palms of the youth\u2019s hands, the soles of his feet, and the\ncrown of his head, repeating incantations as he performed this last\noperation, whereupon the skin burst and fell off, and the youth, haggard\nand lean, lay before them. They nourished him as best they could, and,\nwhen well recovered, sent him home to join his people again and render\nthem happy. Clad in his own fine garments, happy of countenance and\nhandsome as before, and, according to his regular custom, bearing a Deer\non his back, returned the youth to his people, and there he lived most\nhappily.\n\n * * * * *\n\nAs I have said, this was in the days of the ancients, and it is because\nthis youth lived so long with the Deer and became acquainted with their\nevery way and their every word, and taught all that he knew to his\nchildren and to others whom he took into his friendship, that we have\ntoday a class of men--the Sacred Hunters of our tribe,--who surpassingly\nunderstand the ways and the language of the Deer.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Carvings}]\n\n\n\n\nTHE BOY HUNTER WHO NEVER SACRIFICED TO THE DEER HE HAD SLAIN:\n\nOR THE ORIGIN OF THE SOCIETY OF RATTLESNAKES\n\n\nIn very ancient times, there lived at T\u00e2\u2032ia,[9] below the Zu\u00f1i\nMountains, an old _sh\u00edwani_ or priest-chief, who had a young son named\nH\u00e9asailuhtiwa (\u201cMetal-hand\u201d), famed throughout the land of the Zu\u00f1is for\nhis success in hunting.\n\n [9] The native name of the Zu\u00f1i town of Las Nutrias.\n\nWhen very young, this lad had said to his parents: \u201cMy old ones, let me\ngo away from the home of my fathers and dwell by myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy do you, a young boy, wish to go and dwell by yourself, my son? Know\nyou not that you would fare but badly, for you are careless and\nforgetful? No, no! remain with us, that we may care for you.\u201d\n\nBut the boy answered: \u201cWhy should I fare badly? Can I not hunt my own\ngame and roast the meat over the fire? It is because you never care to\nhave me go forth alone that I wish to live by myself, for I long to\ntravel far and hunt deer in the mountains of many countries: yet\nwhenever I start forth you call me back, and it is painful to my longing\nthoughts thus to be held back when I would go forward.\u201d\n\nIt was not until the lad had spoken thus again and again, and once\nmore, that the parents sadly yielded to his wish. They insisted,\nhowever, much to the boy\u2019s displeasure, that his younger sister,\nWa\u00edasialuhtitsa, should go with him, only to look after his house, and\nto remind him here and there, at times, of his forgetfulness. So the\nbrother and sister chose the lofty rooms of a high house in the upper\npart of the pueblo and lived there.\n\nThe boy each day went out hunting and failed not each time to bring in\nslain animals, while the sister cooked for him and looked after the\nhouse. Yet, although the boy was a great hunter, he never sacrificed to\nthe Deer he had slain, nor to the Gods of Prey who delight in aiding the\nhunter who renews them; for the lad was forgetful and careless of all\nthings.\n\nOne day he went forth over the mountain toward the north, until he came\nto the Waters of the Bear.[10] There he started up a huge Buck, and,\nfinding the trail, followed it far toward the northward. Yet, although\nswift of foot, the youth could not overtake the running Deer, and thus\nit happened that he went on and on, past mesas, valleys, and mountains,\nuntil he came to the brink of a great river which flows westwardly from\nthe north.[11] On the banks of this great river grew forests of\ncottonwood, and into the thickets of these forests led the trail,\nstraight toward the river bank. Just as the young man was about to\nfollow the track to the bank, he thought he saw under a large tree in\nthe midst of the thickets the form of the Deer, so, bending very low, he\nran around close to the bank, and came up between the river and the\nthicket.\n\n [10] A\u00ednshik\u2019yanakwin, or Bear Spring, where Fort Wingate now\n stands.\n\n [11] Probably Green River, or some important tributary of the\n Colorado Grande.\n\nAs he guardedly approached the tree, his eyes now following the track,\nnow glancing up, he discovered a richly dressed, handsome young man, who\ncalled out to him: \u201cHow art thou these days, and whither art thou\ngoing?\u201d\n\nThe young man straightened up, and quickly drawing his breath, replied:\n\u201cI am hunting a Deer whose tracks I have followed all the way from the\nWaters of the Bear.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed!\u201d exclaimed the stranger, \u201cand where has thy Deer gone?\u201d\n\n\u201cI know not,\u201d replied the youth, \u201cfor here are his tracks.\u201d Then he\nobserved that they led to the place where the stranger was sitting, and\nthe latter at the same time remarked:\n\n\u201cI am the Deer, and it was as I would have it that I enticed thee\nhither.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hai-\u00ed!_\u201d exclaimed the young man.\n\n\u201cAye,\u201d continued the stranger. \u201cAlas! alas! thou forgetful one! Thou\nhast day after day chased my children over the plains and slain them;\nthou hast made thyself happy of their flesh, and of their flesh added\nunto thine own meat and that of thy kindred; but, alas! thou hast been\nforgetful and careless, and not once hast thou given unto their souls\nthe comfort of that which they yearn for and need. Yet hast thou had\ngood fortune in the chase. At last the Sun-father has listened to the\nsupplications of my children and commanded that I bring thee here, and\nhere have I brought thee. Listen! The Sun-father commands that thou\nshalt visit him in his house at the western end of the world, and these\nare his instructions.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed! Well, I suppose it must be, and it is well!\u201d exclaimed the\nyoung man.\n\n\u201cAnd,\u201d continued the Deer-being, \u201cthou must hasten home and call thy\nfather. Tell him to summon his _Pithlan Sh\u00edwani_ (Priest of the Bow, or\nWarrior) and command him that he shall instruct his children to repair\nto the rooms of sacred things and prepare plumed prayer-sticks for the\nSun-father, the Moon-mother, and the Great Ocean, and red plumes of\nsacrifice for the Beings of Prey; that fully they must prepare\neverything, for thou, their child and father, shalt visit the home of\nthe Sun-father, and in payment for thy forgetfulness and carelessness\nshalt render him, and the Moon-mother, and the Beings of the Great\nOcean, plumes of sacrifice. Hasten home, and tell thy father these\nthings. Then tell thy sister to prepare sweetened meal of parched corn\nto serve as the food of thy journey, and pollen of the flowers of corn;\nand ask thy mother to prepare great quantities of new cotton, and,\nmaking all these things into bundles, thou must summon some of thy\nrelatives, and come to this tree on the fourth day from this day. Make\nhaste, for thou art swift of foot, and tell all these things to thy\nfather; he will understand thee, for is he not a priest-chief? Hast\nthou knives of flint?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the young man, \u201cmy father has many.\u201d\n\n\u201cSelect from them two,\u201d said the Deer-being--\u201ca large one and a smaller\none; and when thou hast returned to this place, cut down with the larger\nknife yonder great tree, and with the smaller knife hollow it out. Leave\nthe large end entire, and for the smaller end thou must make a round\ndoor, and around the inside of the smaller end cut a notch that shall be\nlike a terrace toward the outside, but shall slope from within that thou\nmayest close it from the inside with the round door; then pad the inside\nwith cotton, and make in the bottom a padding thicker than the rest; but\nleave space that thou mayest lie thy length, or sit up and eat. And in\nthe top cut a hole larger inside than out, that thou mayest close it\nfrom the inside with a plug of wood. Then when thou hast placed the\nsweetened meal of parched corn inside, and the plumed prayer-sticks and\nthe sacred pollen of corn-flowers, then enter thyself and close the door\nin the end and the hole in the top that thy people may roll thee into\nthe river. Thou wilt meet strange beings on thy way. Choose from amongst\nthem whom thou shalt have as a companion, and proceed, as thy companion\nshall direct, to the great mountain where the Sun enters. Haste and tell\nthy father these things.\u201d And ere the youth could say, \u201cBe it well,\u201d\nand, \u201cI will,\u201d the Deer-being had vanished, and he lifted up his face\nand started swiftly for the home of his fathers.\n\nAt sunset the sister looked forth from her high house-top, but nowhere\ncould she see her brother coming. She turned at last to enter, thinking\nand saying to her breast: \u201cAlas! what did we not think and guess of his\ncarelessness.\u201d But just as the country was growing dim in the darkness,\nthe young man ran breathlessly in, and, greeting his sister, sat down in\nthe doorway.\n\nThe sister wondered that he had no deer or other game, but placed a meal\nbefore him, and, when he had done, herself ate. But the young man\nremained silent until she had finished, then he said: \u201cYounger sister, I\nam weary and would sit here; do you go and call father, for I would\nspeak to him of many things.\u201d\n\nSo the sister cleared away the food and ran to summon the father. Soon\nshe returned with the old man, who, sighing, \u201c_Ha hua!_\u201d from the effort\nof climbing, greeted his son and sat down, looking all about the room\nfor the fresh deer-meat; but, seeing none, he asked: \u201cWhat and wherefore\nhast thou summoned me, my son?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is this,\u201d replied the son, and he related all that had been told him\nby the Deer-being, describing the magnificent dress, the turquoise and\nshell earrings, necklaces, and wristlets of the handsome stranger.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d replied the father. \u201cIt is well; for as the Sun-father hath\ndirected the Deer-being, thus must it be done.\u201d\n\nThen he forthwith went away and commanded his Priest of the Bow, who,\nmounting to the topmost house, directed the elders and priests of the\ntribe, saying:\n\n \u201cYe, our children, listen!\n Ye I will this day inform,\n Our child, our father,\n He of the strong hand,\n He who so hunts the Deer,\n Goes unto the Sunset world,\n Goes, our Sun-father to greet;\n Gather at the sacred houses,\n Bring thy prayer-sticks, twines, and feathers,\n And prepare for him,--\n For the Sun-father,\n For the Moon-mother,\n For the Great Ocean,\n For the Prey-beings, plumes and treasures.\n Hasten, hasten, ye our children, in the morning!\u201d\n\nSo the people gathered in the _kiwetsiwe_ and sacred houses next morning\nand began to make prayer-plumes, while the sister of the young man and\nher relatives made sweet parched corn-meal and gathered pollen. Toward\nevening all was completed. The young man summoned his relatives, and\nchose his four uncles to accompany him. Then he spread enough\ncotton-wool out to cover the floor, and, gathering it up, made it into a\nsmall bundle. The sweet meal filled a large sack of buckskin, and he\ntook also a little sack of sacred red paint and the black warrior paint\nwith little shining particles in it. Then he bade farewell to his\nlamenting people and rested for the evening journey.\n\nNext morning, escorted by priests, the young man, arrayed in garments\nof embroidered white cotton and carrying his plumes in his arms, started\nout of the town, and, accompanied only by his four uncles, set out over\nthe mountains. On the third day they reached the forest on the bank of\nthe great river and encamped.\n\nThen the young man left the camp of his uncles and went alone into the\nforest, and, choosing the greatest tree he could find, hacked midway\nthrough it with his great flint knife. The next day he cut the other\nhalf and felled it, when he found it partly hollow. So with his little\nknife he began to cut it as he had been directed, and made the round\ndoor for it and the hole through the top. With his bundle of cotton he\npadded it everywhere inside until it was thickly coated and soft, and he\nmade a bed on the bottom as thick as himself.\n\nWhen all was ready and he had placed his food and plumes inside, he\ncalled his uncles and showed them the hollow log. \u201cIn this,\u201d said he, \u201cI\nam to journey to the western home of our Sun-father. When I have entered\nand closed the round door tightly and put the plug into the upper hole\nsecurely, do ye, never thinking of me, roll the log over and over to the\nhigh brink of the river, and, never regarding consequences, push it into\nthe water.\u201d\n\nThen it was that the uncles all lamented and tried to dissuade him; but\nhe persisted, and they bade him \u201cGo,\u201d as forever, \u201cfor,\u201d said they,\n\u201ccould one think of journeying even to the end of the earth and across\nthe waters that embrace the world without perishing?\u201d\n\nThen, hastily embracing each of them, the young man entered his log,\nand, securely fastening the door from the inside, and the plug, called\nout (they heard but faintly), \u201c_Kesi!_\u201d which means \u201cAll is ready.\u201d\n\nSorrowfully and gently they rolled the log over and over to the high\nriver bank, and, hesitating a moment, pushed it off with anxious eyes\nand closed mouths into the river. Eagerly they watched it as it tumbled\nend-over-end and down into the water with a great splash, and\ndisappeared under the waves, which rolled one after another across to\nthe opposite banks of the river. But for a long time they saw nothing of\nit. After a while, far off, speeding on toward the Western Waters of the\nWorld, they saw the log rocking along on the rushing waters until it\npassed out of sight, and they sadly turned toward their homes under the\nMountains of the South.\n\nWhen the log had ceased rocking and plunging, the young man cautiously\ndrew out the plug, and, finding that no water flowed in, peered out. A\nray of sunlight slanted in, and by that he knew it was not yet midday,\nand he could see a round piece of sky and clouds through the hole.\nBy-and-by the ray of sunlight came straight down, and then after a while\nslanted the other way, and finally toward evening it ceased to shine in,\nand then the youth took out some of his meal and ate his supper. When\nafter a while he could see the stars, and later the Hanging Lines [the\nsword-belt of Orion], he knew it was time to rest, so he lay down to\nsleep.\n\nThus, day after day, he travelled until he knew he was out on the Great\nWaters of the World, for no longer did his log strike against anything\nor whirl around, nor could he see, through the chink, leaves of\noverhanging trees, nor rocks and banks of earth. On the tenth morning,\nwhen he looked up through the hole, he saw that the clouds did not move,\nand wondering at this, kicked at his log, but it would not move. Then he\npeered out as far as he could and saw rocks and trees. When he tried to\nrock his log, it remained firm, so he determined to open the door at the\nend.\n\nNow, in reality, his log had been cast high up on the shore of a great\nmountain that rose out of the waters; and this mountain was the home of\nthe Rattlesnakes. A Rattlesnake maiden was roaming along the shore just\nas the young man was about to open the door of his log. She espied the\ncurious vessel, and said to herself in thought: \u201cWhat may this be? Ah,\nyes, and who? Ah, yes, the mortal who was to come; it must be he!\u201d\nWhereupon she hastened to the shore and tapped on the log.\n\n\u201cArt thou come?\u201d she asked.\n\n\u201cAye,\u201d replied the youth. \u201cWho may you be, and where am I?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are landed on the Island of the Rattlesnakes, and I am one of them.\nThe other side of the mountain here is where our village is. Come out\nand go with me, for my old ones have expected you long.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it dry, surely?\u201d asked the young man.\n\n\u201cWhy, yes! Here you are high above the waters.\u201d\n\nThereupon the young man opened from the inside his door, and peered out.\nSurely enough, there he was high among the rocks and sands. Then he\nlooked at the Rattlesnake maiden, and scarcely believed she was what she\ncalled herself, for she was a most beautiful young woman, and like a\ndaughter of men. Yet around her waist--she was dressed in cotton\nmantles--was girt a rattlesnake-skin which was open at the breast and on\nthe crown of the head.\n\n\u201cCome with me,\u201d said the maiden; and she led the way over the mountain\nand across to a deep valley, where terrible Serpents writhed and gleamed\nin the sunlight so thickly that they seemed, with their hissing and\nrattling, like a dry mat shaken by the wind. The youth drew back in\nhorror, but the maiden said: \u201cFear not; they will neither harm you nor\nfrighten you more, for they are my people.\u201d Whereupon she commanded them\nto fall back and make a pathway for the young man and herself; and they\ntamely obeyed her commands. Through the opening thus made they passed\ndown to a cavern, on entering which they found a great room. There were\ngreat numbers of Rattlesnake people, old and young, gathered in council,\nfor they knew of the coming of the young man. Around the walls of their\nhouses were many pegs and racks with serpent skins hanging on\nthem--skins like the one the young girl wore as a girdle. The elders\narose and greeted the youth, saying: \u201cOur child and our father, comest\nthou, comest thou happily these many days?\u201d\n\n\u201cAye, happily,\u201d replied the youth.\n\nAnd after a feast of strange food had been placed before the young man,\nand he had eaten a little, the elders said to him: \u201cKnowest thou whither\nthou goest, that the way is long and fearful, and to mortals unknown,\nand that it will be but to meet with poverty that thou journeyest alone?\nTherefore have we assembled to await thy coming and in order that thou\nshouldst journey preciously, we have decided to ask thee to choose from\namongst us whom thou shalt have for a companion.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well, my fathers,\u201d said the young man, and, casting his eyes\nabout the council to find which face should be kindest to him, he chose\nthe maiden, and said: \u201cLet it be this one, for she found me and loved me\nin that she gently and without fear brought me into your presence.\u201d\n\nAnd the girl said: \u201cIt is well, and I will go.\u201d\n\nInstantly the grave and dignified elders, the happy-faced youths and\nmaidens, the kind-eyed matrons, all reached up for their serpent skins,\nand, passing them over their persons,--lo! in the time of the telling of\nit, the whole place was filled with writhing and hissing Serpents and\nthe din of their rattles. In horror the young man stood against the wall\nlike a hollow stalk, and the Serpent maiden, going to each of the\nmembers of the council, extracted from each a single fang, which she\nwrapped together in a piece of fabric, until she had a great bundle.\nThen she passed her hand over her person, and lo! she became a beautiful\nhuman maiden again, holding in her hand a rattlesnake skin. Then taking\nup the bundle of fangs, she said to the young man: \u201cCome, for I know the\nway and will guide you!\u201d--and the young man followed her to the shore\nwhere his log lay.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said she, \u201cwait while I fix this log anew, that it may be well,\u201d\nand she bored many little holes all over the log, and into these holes\nshe inserted the crooked fangs, so that they all stood slanting toward\nthe rear, like the spines on the back of a porcupine.\n\nWhen she had done this, she said: \u201cFirst I will enter, for there may not\nbe room for two, and in order that I may make myself like the space I\nenter, I will lay on my dress again. Do you, when I have entered, enter\nalso, and with your feet kick the log down to the shore waters, when you\nmust quickly close the door and the waters will take us abroad upon\nthemselves.\u201d\n\nIn an instant she had passed into her serpent form again and crawled\ninto the log. The young man did as he was bidden, and as he closed the\ndoor a wave bore them gently out upon the waters. Then, as the young man\nturned to look upon his companion coiled so near him, he drew back in\nhorror.\n\n\u201cWhy do you fear?\u201d asked the Rattlesnake.\n\n\u201cI know not, but I fear you; perhaps, though you speak gently, you will,\nwhen I sleep, bite me and devour my flesh, and it is with thoughts of\nthis that I have fear.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, no!\u201d replied the maiden, \u201cbut, that you may not fear, I will\nchange myself.\u201d And so saying, she took off her skin, and, opening the\nupper part of the door, hung the skin on the fangs outside.\n\nFinally, toward noon-time, the youth prepared his meal food, and placing\nsome before the maiden, asked her to eat.\n\n\u201cAh, no! alas, I know not the food of mortals. Have you not with you the\nyellow dust of the corn-flower?\u201d\n\n\u201cAye, that I have,\u201d said the young man, and producing a bag, opened it\nand asked the girl: \u201cHow shall I feed it to you?\u201d\n\n\u201cScatter it upon the cotton, and by my knowledge I will gather it.\u201d\n\nThen the young man scattered a great quantity on the cotton, wondering\nhow the girl would gather it up. But the maiden opened the door, and\ntaking down the skin changed herself to a serpent, and passing to and\nfro over the pollen, received it all within her scales. Then she resumed\nher human form again and hung the skin up as before.\n\nThus they floated until they came to the great forks of the Mighty\nWaters of the World, and their floating log was guided into the southern\nbranch. And on they floated toward the westward for four months from the\ntime when the uncles had thrown him into the river.\n\nOne day the maiden said to the youth: \u201cWe are nearing our journey\u2019s end,\nand, as I know the way, I will guide you. Hold yourself hard and ready,\nfor the waters will cast our house high upon the shores of the mountain\nwherein the Sun enters, and these shores are inaccessible because so\nsmooth.\u201d\n\nThen the log was cast high above the slippery bank, and when the waters\nreceded there it remained, for the fangs grappled it fast.\n\nThen said the maiden: \u201cLet us now go out. Fear not for your craft, for\nthe fangs will hold it fast; it matters little how high the waves may\nroll, or how steep and slippery the bank.\u201d\n\nThen, taking in his arms the sacred plumes which his people had prepared\nfor him, he followed the girl far up to the doorway in the Mountain of\nthe Sea. Out of it grew a great ladder of giant rushes, by the side of\nwhich stood an enormous basket-tray. Very fast approached the Sun, and\nsoon the Sun-father descended the ladder, and the two voyagers followed\ndown. They were gently greeted by a kind old woman, the grandmother of\nthe Sun, and were given seats at one side of a great and wonderfully\nbeautiful room.\n\nThen the Sun-father approached some pegs in the wall and from them\nsuspended his bow and quiver, and his bright sun-shield, and his\nwonderful travelling dress. Behold! there stood, kindly smiling before\nthe youth and maiden, the most magnificent and gentle of beings in the\nworld--the Sun-father.\n\nThen the Sun-father greeted them, and, turning to a great package which\nhe had brought in, opened it and disclosed thousands of shell beads, red\nand white, and thousands more of brilliant turquoises. These he poured\ninto the great tray at the door-side, and gave them to the grandmother,\nwho forthwith began to sort them with great rapidity. But, ere she had\ndone, the Sun-father took them from her; part of them he took out with\nunerring judgment and cast them abroad into the great waters as we cast\nsacred prayer-meal. The others he brought below and gave them to the\ngrandmother for safe-keeping.\n\nThen he turned once more to the youth and the maiden, and said to the\nformer: \u201cSo thou hast come, my child, even as I commanded. It is well,\nand I am thankful.\u201d Then, in a stern and louder voice, which yet sounded\nlike the voice of a father, he asked: \u201cHast thou brought with thee that\nwhereby we are made happy with our children?\u201d\n\nAnd the young man said: \u201cAye, I have.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well; and if it be well, then shalt thou precious be; for knowest\nthou not that I recognize the really good from the evil,--even of the\nthoughts of men,--and that I know the prayer and sacrifice that is\nmeant, from the words and treasures of those who do but lie in\naddressing them to me, and speak and act as children in a joke? Behold\nthe treasure which I brought with me from the cities of mankind today!\nSome of them I cherished preciously, for they are the gifts to me of\ngood hearts and I treasure them that I may return them in good fortune\nand blessing to those who gave them. But some thou sawest I cast abroad\ninto the great waters that they may again be gathered up and presented\nto me; for they were the gifts of double and foolish hearts, and as such\ncannot be treasured by me nor returned unto those who gave them. Bring\nforth, my child, the plumes and gifts thou hast brought. Thy mother\ndwelleth in the next room, and when she appeareth in this, thou shalt\nwith thine own hand present to her thy sacrifice.\u201d\n\nSo the youth, bowing his head, unwrapped his bundle and laid before the\nSun-father the plumes he had brought. And the Sun-father took them and\nbreathed upon them and upon the youth, and said: \u201cThanks, this day. Thou\nhast straightened thy crooked thoughts.\u201d\n\nAnd when the beautiful Mother of Men, the Moon-mother--the wife of the\nSun-father--appeared, the boy placed before her the plumes he had\nbrought, and she, too, breathed upon them, and said: \u201cThanks, this day,\u201d\neven as the Sun-father had.\n\nThen the Sun-father turned to the youth and said: \u201cThou shalt join me in\nmy journey round the world, that thou mayest see the towns and nations\nof mankind--my children; that thou mayest realize how many are my\nchildren. Four days shalt thou join me in my journeyings, and then shalt\nthou return to the home of thy fathers.\u201d\n\nAnd the young man said: \u201cIt is well!\u201d but he turned his eyes to the\nmaiden.\n\n\u201cFear not, my child,\u201d added the Father, \u201cshe shall sit preciously in my\nhouse until we have returned.\u201d\n\nAnd after they had feasted, the Sun-father again enrobed himself, and\nthe youth he dressed in appearance as he himself was dressed. Then,\ntaking the sun-dress from the wall, he led the way down through the four\ngreat apartments of the world, and came out into the Lower Country of\nthe Earth.\n\nBehold! as they entered that great world, it was filled with snow and\ncold below, and the tracks of men led out over great white plains, and\nas they passed the cities of these nether countries people strange to\nsee were clearing away the snow from their house-tops and doorways.\n\nAnd so they journeyed to the other House of the Sun, and, passing up\nthrough the four great rooms, entered the home of the aunts of the\nSun-father; and here, too, the young man presented plumes of prayer and\nsacrifice to the inmates, and received their thanks and blessings.\n\nAgain they started together on their journey; and behold! as they came\nout into the World of Daylight, the skies below them were filled with\nthe rain of summer-time.\n\nAcross the great world they journeyed, and they saw city after city of\nmen, and many tribes of strange peoples. Here they were engaged in wars\nand in wasting the lives of one another; there they were dying of famine\nand disease; and more of misery and poverty than of happiness saw the\nyoung man among the nations of men. \u201cFor,\u201d said the Sun-father, \u201cthese\nbe, alas! my children, who waste their lives in foolishness, or slay one\nanother in useless anger; yet they are brothers to one another, and I am\nthe father of all.\u201d\n\nThus journeyed they four days; and each evening when they returned to\nthe home where the Sun-father enters, he gave to his grandmother the\ngreat package of treasure which his children among men had sacrificed to\nhim, and each day he cast the treasures of the bad and double-hearted\ninto the great waters.\n\nOn the fourth day, when they had entered the western home of the\nSun-father, said the latter to the youth: \u201cThy task is meted out and\nfinished; thou shalt now return unto the home of thy fathers--my\nchildren below the mountains of Sh\u00edwina. How many days, thinkest thou,\nshalt thou journey?\u201d\n\n\u201cMany days more than ten,\u201d replied the youth with a sigh.\n\n\u201cAh! no, my child,\u201d said the Sun-father. \u201cListen; thou shalt in one day\nreach the banks of the river whence thou camest. Listen! Thou shalt take\nthis, my shaft of strong lightning; thou shalt grasp its neck with firm\nhands, and as thou extendest it, it will stretch out far to thy front\nand draw thee more swiftly than the arrow\u2019s flight through the water.\nTake with thee this quiver of unerring arrows, and this strong bow, that\nby their will thou mayest seek life; but forget not thy sacrifices nor\nthat they are to be made with true word and a faithful heart. Take also\nwith thee thy guide and companion, the Rattlesnake maiden. When thou\nhast arrived at the shore of the country of her people, let go the\nlightning, and it will land thee high. On the morrow I will journey\nslowly, that ere I be done rising thou mayest reach the home of the\nmaiden. There thou must stop but briefly, for thy fathers, the\nRattle-tailed Serpents, will instruct thee, and to their counsel thou\nmust pay strict heed, for thus only will it be well. Thou shalt present\nto them the plumes of the Prey-beings thou bringest, and when thou hast\npresented these, thou must continue thy journey. Rest thou until the\nmorrow, and early as the light speed hence toward the home of thy\nfathers. May all days find ye, children, happy.\u201d With this, the\nSun-father, scarce listening to the prayers and thanks of the youth and\nmaiden, vanished below.\n\nThus, when morning approached, the youth and the maiden entered the\nhollow house and closed it. Scarce did the youth grasp the lightning\nwhen, drawn by the bright shaft, the log shot far out into the great\nwaters and was skimming, too fast to be seen, toward the home of the\nRattle-tailed Serpents.\n\nAnd the Sun had but just climbed above the mountains of this world of\ndaylight when the little tube was thrown high above the banks of the\ngreat island whither they were journeying.\n\nThen the youth and the maiden again entered the council of the\nRattlesnakes, and when they saw the shining black paint on his face they\nasked that they too might paint their faces like his own; but they\npainted their cheeks awkwardly, as to this day may be seen; for all\nrattlesnakes are painted unevenly in the face. Then the young man\npresented to each the plumes he had brought, and told the elders that he\nwould return with their maiden to the home of his father.\n\n\u201cBe it well, that it may be well,\u201d they replied; and they thanked him\nwith delight for the treasure-plumes he had bestowed upon them.\n\n\u201cGo ye happily all days,\u201d said the elders. \u201cListen, child, and father,\nto our words of advice. But a little while, and thou wilt reach the bank\nwhence thou started. Let go the shaft of lightning, and, behold, the\ntube thou hast journeyed with will plunge far down into the river. Then\nshalt thou journey with this our maiden three days. Care not to embrace\nher, for if thou doest this, it will not be well. Journey ye preciously,\nour children, and may ye be happy one with the other.\u201d\n\nSo again they entered their hollow log, and, before entering, the maiden\nplaced her rattlesnake skin as before on the fangs. With incredible\nswiftness the lightning drew them up the great surging river to the\nbanks where the cottonwood forests grow, and when the lad pressed the\nshaft it landed them high among the forest trees above the steep bank.\nThen the youth pressed the lightning-shaft with all his might, and the\nlog was dashed into the great river. While yet he gazed at the bounding\nlog, behold! the fangs which the maiden had fixed into it turned to\nliving serpents; hence today, throughout the whole great world, from the\nLand of Summer to the Waters of Sunset, are found the Rattlesnakes and\ntheir children.\n\nThen the young man journeyed with the maiden southward; and on the way,\nwith the bow and arrows the Sun-father had given him, he killed game,\nthat they might have meat to eat. Nor did he forget the commandments of\nhis Sun-father. At night he built a fire in a forest of pi\u00f1ons, and made\na bower for the maiden near to it; but she could not sit there, for she\nfeared the fire, and its light pained her eyes. Nor could she eat at\nfirst of the food he cooked for her, but only tasted a few mouthfuls of\nit. Then the young man made a bed for her under the trees, and told her\nto rest peacefully, for he would guard her through the night.\n\nAnd thus they journeyed and rested until the fourth day, when at evening\nthey entered the town under the mountains of Sh\u00edwina and were happily\nwelcomed by the father, sister, and relatives of the young man. Blessed\nby the old priest-chief, the youth and the maiden dwelt with the younger\nsister Wa\u00edasialuhtitsa, in the high house of the upper part of the town.\nAnd the boy was as before a mighty hunter, and the maiden at last grew\nused to the food and ways of mortals.\n\nAfter they had thus lived together for a long time, there were born of\nthe maiden two children, twins.\n\nWonderful to relate, these children grew to the power of wandering, in a\nsingle day and night; and hence, when they appeared suddenly on the\nhouse-tops and in the plazas, people said to one another:\n\n\u201cWho are these strange people, and whence came they?\u201d--and talked much\nafter the manner of our foolish people. And the other little children in\nthe town beat them and quarrelled with them, as strange children are\napt to do with strange children. And when the twins ran in to their\nmother, crying and complaining, the poor young woman was saddened; so\nshe said to the father when he returned from hunting in the evening:\n\n\u201cAh! \u2018their father,\u2019 it is not well that we remain longer here. No,\nalas! I must return to the country of my fathers, and take with me these\nlittle ones,\u201d and, although the father prayed her not, she said only:\n\u201cIt must be,\u201d and he was forced to consent.\n\nThen for four days the Rattlesnake woman instructed him in the prayers\nand chants of her people, and she took him forth and showed him the\nmedicines whereby the bite of her fathers might be assuaged, and how to\nprepare them. Again and again the young man urged her not to leave him,\nsaying: \u201cThe way is long and filled with dangers. How, alas! will you\nreach it in safety?\u201d\n\n\u201cFear not,\u201d said she; \u201cgo with me only to the shore of the great river,\nand my fathers will come to meet me and take me home.\u201d\n\nSadly, on the last morning, the father accompanied his wife and children\nto the forests of the great river. There she said he must not follow;\nbut as he embraced them he cried out:\n\n\u201cAh, alas! my beautiful wife, my beloved children, flesh of my flesh,\nhow shall I not follow ye?\u201d\n\nThen his wife answered: \u201cFear not, nor trouble thyself with sad\nthoughts. Whither we go thou canst not follow, for thou eatest cooked\nfood--(thou art a mortal); but soon thy fathers and mine will come for\nthee, and thou wilt follow us, never to return.\u201d Then she turned from\nhim with the little children and was seen no more, and the young man\nsilently returned to his home below the mountains of Sh\u00edwina.\n\nIt happened here and there in time that young men of his tribe were\nbitten by rattlesnakes; but the young man had only to suck their wounds,\nand apply his medicines, and sing his incantations and prayers, to cure\nthem. Whenever this happened, he breathed the sacred breath upon them,\nand enjoined them to secrecy of the rituals and chants he taught them,\nsave only to such as they should choose and teach the practice of their\nprayers.\n\nThus he had cured and taught eight, when one day he ascended the\nmountains for wood. There, alone in the forest, he was met and bitten by\nhis fathers. Although he slowly and painfully crawled home, long ere he\nreached his town he was so swollen that the eight whom he had instructed\ntried in vain to cure him, and, bidding them cherish as a precious gift\nthe knowledge of his beloved wife, he died.\n\nImmediately his fathers met his breath and being and took them to the\nhome of the Maiden of the Rattlesnakes and of his lost children. Need we\nask why he was not cured by his disciples?\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients, and hence today we have fathers\namongst us to whom the dread bite of the rattlesnake need cause no sad\nthoughts,--the _Tchi Kialikwe_ (Society of the Rattlesnakes).\n\nThus much and thus shortened is my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Masks}]\n\n\n [Illustration: THUNDER MOUNTAIN FROM ZU\u00d1I\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nHOW \u00c1HAIY\u00daTA AND M\u00c1TSAIL\u00c9MA STOLE THE THUNDER-STONE AND THE\nLIGHTNING-SHAFT\n\n\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, with their grandmother, lived where now stands\nthe ancient Middle Place of Sacrifice on Thunder Mountain.\n\nOne day they went out hunting prairie-dogs, and while they were running\nabout from one prairie-dog village to another, it began to rain, which\nmade the trail slippery and the ground muddy, so that the boys became a\nlittle wrathful. Then they sat down and cursed the rain for a brief\nspace. Off in the south it thundered until the earth trembled, and the\nlightning-shafts flew about the red-bordered clouds until the two\nbrothers were nearly blinded with the beholding of it. Presently the\nyounger brother smoothed his brow, and jumped up with an exclamation\nsomewhat profane, and cried out: \u201cElder brother, let us go to the Land\nof Everlasting Summer and steal from the gods in council their thunder\nand lightning. I think it would be fine fun to do that sort of thing we\nhave just been looking at and listening to.\u201d\n\nThe elder brother was somewhat more cautious; still, on the whole, he\nliked the idea. So he said: \u201cLet us take our prairie-dogs home to the\ngrandmother, that she shall have something to eat meanwhile, and we will\nthink about going tomorrow morning.\u201d\n\nThe next morning, bright and early, they started out. In vain the old\ngrandmother called rather crossly after them: \u201cWhere are you going now?\u201d\nShe could get no satisfaction, for she knew they lied when they called\nback: \u201cOh, we are only going to hunt more prairie-dogs.\u201d It is true that\nthey skulked round in the plains about Thunder Mountain a little while,\nas if looking for prairie-dogs. Then, picking up their wondrously swift\nheels, they sped away toward that beautiful country of the corals, the\nLand of Everlasting Summer.\n\nAt last,--it may be in the mountains of that country, which are said to\nglow like shells of the sea or the clouds of the sunset,--they came to\nthe House of the Beloved Gods themselves. And that red house was a\nwondrous terrace, rising wall after wall, and step after step, like a\nhigh mountain, grand and stately; and the walls were so smooth and high\nthat the skill and power of the little War-gods availed them nothing;\nthey could not get in.\n\n\u201cWhat shall we do?\u201d asked the younger brother.\n\n\u201cGo home,\u201d said the elder, \u201cand mind our own affairs.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no,\u201d urged the younger; \u201cI have it, elder brother. Let us hunt up\nour grandfather, the Centipede.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood!\u201d replied the elder. \u201cA happy thought is that of yours, my brother\nyounger.\u201d\n\nForthwith they laid down their bows and quivers of mountain-lion skin,\ntheir shields, and other things, and set about turning over all the flat\nstones they could find. Presently, lifting one with their united\nstrength, they found under it the very old fellow they sought. He\ndoubled himself, and covered his eyes from the sharpness of the\ndaylight. He did not much like being thus disturbed, even by his\ngrandchildren, the War-gods, in the middle of his noon-day nap, and was\nby no means polite to them. But they prodded him a little in the side,\nand said: \u201cNow, grandfather, look here! We are in difficulty, and there\nis no one in the wide world who can help us out as you will.\u201d\n\nThe old Centipede was naturally flattered. He unrolled himself and\nviewed them with a look which he intended to be extremely reproachful\nand belittling. \u201cAh, my grandchildren,\u201d said he, \u201cwhat are you up to\nnow? Are you trying to get yourselves into trouble, as usual? No doubt\nof it! I will help you all I can; but the consequences be on your own\nheads!\u201d\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s right, grandfather, that\u2019s right! No one in the world could help\nus as you can,\u201d said one of them. \u201cThe fact is, we want to get hold of\nthe thunder-stone and the lightning-shaft which the Rain-gods up there\nin the tremendous house keep and guard so carefully, we understand. Now,\nin the first place, we cannot get up the wall; in the second place, if\nwe did, we would probably have a fuss with them in trying to steal these\nthings. Therefore, we want you to help us, if you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWith all my heart, my boys! But I should advise you to run along home\nto your grandmother, and let these things alone.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, pshaw, nonsense! We are only going to play a little while with the\nthunder and lightning.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d replied the old Worm; \u201csit here and wait for me.\u201d He\nwriggled himself and stirred about, and his countless legs were more\ncountless than ever with rapid motions as he ran toward the walls of\nthat stately terrace. A vine could not have run up more closely, nor a\nbird more rapidly; for if one foot slipped, another held on; so the old\nCentipede wriggled himself up the sides and over the roof, down into the\ngreat sky-hole; and, scorning the ladder, which he feared might creak,\nhe went along, head-downward, on the ceiling to the end of the room over\nthe altar, ran down the side, and approached that most forbidden of\nplaces, the altar of the gods themselves. The beloved gods, in silent\nmajesty, were sitting there with their heads bowed in meditation so deep\nthat they heard not the faint scuffle of the Centipede\u2019s feet as he\nwound himself down into the altar and stole the thunder-stone. He took\nit in his mouth--which was larger than the mouths of Centipedes are\nnow--and carried it silently, weighty as it was, up the way he had come,\nover the roof, down the wall, and back to the flat stone where he made\nhis home, and where, hardly able to contain themselves with impatience,\nthe two youthful gods were awaiting him.\n\n\u201cHere he comes!\u201d cried the younger brother, \u201cand he\u2019s got it! By my\nwar-bonnet, he\u2019s got it!\u201d\n\nThe old grandfather threw the stone down. It began to sound, but\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata grabbed it, and, as it were, throttled its world-stirring\nspeech. \u201cGood! good!\u201d he cried to the grandfather; \u201cthank you, old\ngrandfather, thank you!\u201d\n\n\u201cHold on!\u201d cried the younger brother; \u201cyou didn\u2019t bring both. What can\nwe do with the one without the other?\u201d\n\n\u201cShut up!\u201d cried the old Worm. \u201cI know what I am about!\u201d And before they\ncould say any more he was off again. Ere long he returned, carrying the\nshaft of lightning, with its blue, shimmering point, in his mouth.\n\n\u201cGood!\u201d cried the War-gods. And the younger brother caught up the\nlightning, and almost forgot his weapons, which, however, he did stop to\ntake up, and started on a full run for Thunder Mountain, followed by his\nmore deliberate, but equally interested elder brother, who brought along\nthe thunder-stone, which he found a somewhat heavier burden than he had\nsupposed.\n\nIt was not long, you may well imagine, so powerful were these Gods of\nWar, ere they reached the home of their grandmother on the top of\nThunder Mountain. They had carefully concealed the thunder-stone and the\nshaft of lightning meanwhile, and had taken care to provide themselves\nwith a few prairie-dogs by way of deception.\n\nStill, in majestic revery, unmoved, and apparently unwitting of what had\ntaken place, sat the Rain-gods in their home in the mountains of\nSummerland.\n\nNot long after they arrived, the young gods began to grow curious and\nanxious to try their new playthings. They poked one another\nconsiderably, and whispered a great deal, so that their grandmother\nbegan to suspect they were about to play some rash joke or other, and\npresently she espied the point of lightning gleaming under M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma\u2019s\ndirty jacket.\n\n\u201cDemons and corpses!\u201d she cried. \u201cBy the moon! You have stolen the\nthunder-stone and lightning-shaft from the Gods of Rain themselves! Go\nthis instant and return them, and never do such a thing again!\u201d she\ncried, with the utmost severity; and, making a quick step for the\nfireplace, she picked up a poker with which to belabor their backs, when\nthey whisked out of the room and into another. They slammed the door in\ntheir grandmother\u2019s face and braced it, and, clearing away a lot of\nrubbish that was lying around the rear room, they established themselves\nin one end, and, nodding and winking at one another, cried out: \u201cNow,\nthen!\u201d The younger let go the lightning-shaft; the elder rolled the\nthunder-stone. The lightning hissed through the air, and far out into\nthe sky, and returned. The thunder-stone rolled and rumbled until it\nshook the foundations of the mountain. \u201cGlorious fun!\u201d cried the boys,\nrubbing their thighs in ecstasy of delight. \u201cDo it again!\u201d And again\nthey sent forth the lightning and rolled the thunder-stone.\n\nAnd now the gods in Summerland arose in their majesty and breathed upon\nthe skies; and the winds rose, and the rains fell like rivers from the\nclouds, centering their violence upon the roof of the poor old\ngrandmother\u2019s house. Heedlessly those reckless wretches kept on playing\nthe thunder-stone and lightning-shaft without the slightest regard to\nthe tremendous commotion they were raising all through the skies and all\nover Thunder Mountain; but nowhere else as above the house where their\npoor old grandmother lived fell the torrent of the rain, and there\nalone, of course, burst the lightning and rolled the thunder.\n\nSoon the water poured through the roof of the house; but, move the\nthings as the old grandmother would, she could not keep them dry; scold\nthe boys as she would, she could not make them desist. No, they would\nonly go on with their play more violently than ever, exclaiming: \u201cWhat\nhas she to say, anyway? It won\u2019t hurt her to get a good ducking, and\nthis is fun!\u201d By-and-by the waters rose so high that they extinguished\nthe fire. Soon they rose still higher, so that the War-gods had to\npaddle around half submerged. Still they kept rolling the thunder-stone\nand shooting the lightning. The old grandmother scolded harder and\nharder, but after awhile desisted and climbed to the top of the\nfireplace, whence, after recovering from her exertion, she began again.\nBut the boys heeded her not, only saying: \u201cLet her yell! Let her scold!\nThis is fun!\u201d At last they began to take the old grandmother\u2019s scolding\nas a matter of course, and allowed nothing but the water to interrupt\ntheir pastime. It rose so high, finally, that they were near drowning.\nThen they climbed to the roof, but still they kept on.\n\n\u201cBy the bones of the dead! why did we not think to come here before?\n\u2019Tis ten times as fine up here. See him shoot!\u201d cried one to the other,\nas the lightning sped through the sky, ever returning.\n\n\u201cHear it mutter and roll!\u201d cried the other, as the thunder bellowed and\ngrumbled.\n\nBut no sooner had the Two begun their sport on the roof, than the rain\nfell in one vast sheet all about them; and it was not long ere the house\nwas so full that the old grandmother--locked in as she was--bobbed her\npoor pate on the rafters in trying to keep it above the water. She\ngulped water, and gasped, coughed, strangled, and shrieked to no\npurpose.\n\n\u201cWhat a fuss our old grandmother is making, to be sure!\u201d cried the boys.\nAnd they kept on, until, forsooth, the water had completely filled the\nroom, and the grandmother\u2019s cries gurgled away and ceased. Finally, the\nthunder-stone grew so terrific, and the lightning so hot and\nunmanageable, that the boys, drawing a long breath and thinking with\nimmense satisfaction of the fun they had had, possibly also influenced\nas to the safety of the house, which was beginning to totter, flung the\nthunder-stone and the lightning-shaft into the sky, where, rattling and\nflashing away, they finally disappeared over the mountains in the south.\n\nThen the clouds rolled away and the sun shone out, and the boys, wet to\nthe skin, tired in good earnest, and hungry as well, looked around.\n\u201cGoodness! the water is running out of the windows of our house! This\nis a pretty mess we are in! Grandmother! Grandmother!\u201d they shouted.\n\u201cOpen the door, and let us in!\u201d But the old grandmother had piped her\nlast, and never a sound came except that of flowing water. They sat\nthemselves down on the roof, and waited for the water to get lower. Then\nthey climbed down, and pounded open the door, and the water came out\nwith a rush, and out with a rush, too, their poor old grandmother,--her\neyes staring, her hair all mopped and muddied, and her fingers and legs\nas stiff as cedar sticks.\n\n\u201cOh, ye gods! ye gods!\u201d the two boys exclaimed; \u201cwe have killed our own\ngrandmother--poor old grandmother, who scolded us so hard and loved us\nso much! Let us bury her here in front of the door, as soon as the water\nhas run away.\u201d\n\nSo, as soon as it became dry enough, there they buried her; and in less\nthan four days a strange plant grew up on that spot, and on its little\nbranches, amid its bright green leaves, hung long, pointed pods of\nfruit, as red as the fire on the breast of the red-bird.\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the boys, as they stood one day looking at this\nplant. \u201cLet us scatter the seeds abroad, that men may find and plant\nthem. It seems it was not without good cause that in the abandonment to\nour sport we killed our old grandmother, for out of her heart there\nsprung a plant into the fruits of which, as it were, has flowed the\ncolor as well as the fire of her scolding tongue; and, if we have lost\nour grandmother, whom we loved much, but who loved us more, men have\ngained a new food, which, though it burn them, shall please them more\nthan did the heat of her discourse please us. Poor old grandmother! Men\nwill little dream when they eat peppers that the seed of them first\narose from the fiery heart of the grandmother of \u00c1haiy\u00fata and\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma.\u201d\n\nThereupon the two seized the pods and crushed them between their hands,\nwith an exclamation of pleasure at the brisk odor they gave forth. They\ncast the seeds abroad, which seeds here and there took root; and the\nplants which sprang from them being found by men, were esteemed good and\nwere cultivated, as they are to this day in the pepper gardens of Zu\u00f1i.\n\nEver since this time you hear that mountain wherein lived the gods with\ntheir grandmother called Thunder Mountain; and often, indeed, to this\nday, the lightning flashes and the thunder plays over its brows and the\nrain falls there most frequently.\n\nIt is said by some that the two boys, when asked how they stole the\nlightning-shaft and the thunder-stone, told on their poor old\ngrandfather, the Centipede. The beloved Gods of the Rain gave him the\nlightning-shaft to handle in another way, and it so burned and\nshrivelled him that he became small, as you can see by looking at any of\nhis numerous descendants, who are not only small but appear like a\nwell-toasted bit of buckskin, fringed at the edges.\n\nSo shortens my story.\n\n\n [Illustration: A HOPI (MOKI) MAIDEN\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nTHE WARRIOR SUITOR OF MOKI\n\n\n [Illustration: {A young Moki woman}]\n\nWe take up a story. Of the times of the ancients, a story. Listen, ye\nyoung ones and youths, and from what I say draw inference. For behold!\nthe youth of our nation in these recent generations have become less\nsturdy than of old; else what I relate had not happened.\n\nTo our shame be it told that not many generations ago there\nlived in Moki a poor, ill-favored outcast of a young man, a\nnot-to-be-thought-of-as-hero youth, yet nevertheless the hero of my\nstory; for this youth, the last-mentioned in the numbering of the\nmen of Moki in those days, alone brought great grief on the nation\nof Zu\u00f1i.\n\nAnd it happened that in Walpi, on the first mesa of the Mokis, there\nlived an amiable, charming, and surpassingly beautiful girl, whose face\nwas shining, eyes bright, cheeks red like the frost-bite on the\ndatila[12]; whose hair was abundant and soft, black and waving, and done\nup in large whorls above her ears,--larger than those of the other\nmaidens of her town or nation,--and whose beautiful possessions were as\nmany as were the charms of her person.\n\n [12] Fruit of the yucca, or soap-weed plant.\n\nWhat wonder, then, that the youths of the Moki towns should be enamored\nof her, and seek constantly, with much urgent bespeaking, for the favor\nof her affections? Yet she would none of them. She would shake her head\nwith a saucy smile, and reply to every one, as well as to every\nrecommendation of one from her elders: \u201cA hero for me or no one! Any one\nof these young men may win my affections if he will, for who knows until\nthe time comes whether a man be a hero or not?\u201d\n\nSo she made a proposition. She said to all the youths who came suing for\nher hand: \u201cBehold! our nation is at enmity with the Zu\u00f1is, far off to\nthe eastward, over the mountains. If any of you be so stout of limb and\nstrong of heart and brave of will, let him go to Zu\u00f1i, slay the men of\nthat nation, our enemies, and bring home, not only as proofs of his\nvalor, but as presentations to the warrior societies of our people,\nscalps in goodly number. Him will I admire to the tips of my eyelashes;\nhim will I cherish to the extent of my powers; him will I make my\nhusband, and in such a husband will I glory!\u201d\n\nBut most of the young and handsome suitors who worried her with their\nimportunities would depart forthwith, crestfallen, loving the girl as\nthey did, forsooth, much less than they feared the warriors of Zu\u00f1i,--so\ndegenerate they had become, for shame! Months passed by. Not one of\nthose who went to the maiden\u2019s house full of love came away from it with\nas much love as want of valor.\n\nAt last this outcast youth I have mentioned--who was spoken to by none,\nwho lived not even in the houses of his people, but, all filth and rags,\nmade himself comfortable as best he could with the dogs and eagles and\nother creatures captive of the people, eating like them the castaway and\nunwholesome scraps of ordinary meals--heard these jilted lovers\nconversing from time to time, exclaiming one to another: \u201cA valuable\nmaiden, indeed, for whom one would risk one\u2019s life single handed against\na nation whose ancients ever prevailed over all men! No! though she be\nthe loveliest of women, I care not for her on those conditions.\u201d \u201cNor\nI!\u201d \u201cNor I!\u201d others would exclaim.\n\nOverhearing this talk, the youth formed a most presumptuous\nresolution--no other, in fact, than this: that he himself would woo the\nmaiden.\n\nAll dirty and ragged as he was, with hair unkempt, finger-nails long,\nand person calloused by much exposure, lean and wiry like an abused but\nhardened cur, he took himself one night to the home of the maiden\u2019s\nfather.\n\n\u201c_She-e!_\u201d he exclaimed at the entrance of the house, on the top.\n\nAnd the people within called out: \u201c_Kw\u00e1tchi!_\u201d\n\n\u201cAre ye in?\u201d inquired the youth, in such an affable and finished tone\nand manner of speaking that the people expected to see some magnificent\nyouth enter, and to listen to his proposal of marriage with their\nmaiden.\n\nWhen they called out \u201cCome in!\u201d and he came stepping down the ladder\ninto the lighted room, they were, therefore, greatly surprised to see\nthis vagabond in the place of what they expected; nevertheless, the old\nfather greeted him pleasantly and politely and showed him a seat before\nthe fireplace, and bade the women set food before him. And the youth,\nalthough he had not for many a day tasted good food or consumed a full\nmeal even, ate quite sparingly; and, having finished, joined, by the old\nman\u2019s invitation, in the smoking and conversation of the evening.\n\nAt last the old man asked him what he came thinking of; and the youth\nstated that, although it might seem presumptuous, he had heard of the\nconditions which the maiden of this house had made for those who would\nwin her, and it had occurred to him that he would be glad to try,--so\nlittle were his merits, yet so great his love.\n\nThe old man listened, with an inward smile; and the maiden, though she\nconceived no dislike for the youth (there was something about him,\nstrange to say, now that his voice had been heard, which changed her\nopinion of him), nevertheless was quite merry, all to herself, over this\nunheard-of proposal. So, when she was asked what she thought of the\nmatter, merely to test the seriousness of the young vagabond\u2019s motives,\nshe made the conditions for him even harder than she had for the others,\nsaying: \u201cLook you, stranger! If you will slay single-handed some of the\nwarriors of the valiant Zu\u00f1is and bring back to our town, to the joy of\nour warriors and people, a goodly number of their scalps, I will indeed\nwed you, as I have said I would the others.\u201d\n\nThis satisfied the youth, and, bidding them all pass a happy night, he\nwent forth into the dark.\n\nNot quite so poor and helpless as he seemed, was this youth; but one of\nthose wonderful beings of this earth in reality, for, behold! as he had\nlived all his days since childhood with the dogs and eagles and other\ncaptive animals of the towns of Moki-land, so, from long association\nwith them, he had learned their ways and language and had gained their\nfriendship and allegiance as no other mortal ever did. No family had he;\nno one to advise him, save this great family of dogs and other animals\nwith which he lived.\n\nWhat do you suppose he did? He went to each hole, sheltered nook, and\noven in the town and called on the Dogs to join him in council, not long\nbefore morning of that same night. Every Dog in the town answered the\nsummons; and, below the mesa on which Walpi stands, on one of those\nsloping banks lighted by the moon, they gathered and made a tremendous\nclamor with their yelpings and barkings and other noises such as you are\naccustomed to hear from Dogs at night-time. The proposition which the\nyouth made to this council of Dogs was as follows:\n\n\u201cMy friends and brothers, I am about to go forth on the path of war to\nthe cities of the Zu\u00f1is toward the sunrise. If I succeed, my reward will\nbe great. Now, as I well know from having lived amongst you and been one\nof you so long, there are two things which are more prized in a Dog\u2019s\nlife than anything else. An occasional good feast is one of them; being\nlet alone is another. I think I can bring about both of these rewards\nfor you all if you will, four days hence, after I have prepared a\nsufficiency of food for the party, join me in my warlike expedition\nagainst the Zu\u00f1is.\u201d\n\nThe Dogs greeted this proposition with vociferous acclamation, and the\ncouncil dispersed.\n\nOn the following day, toward evening, the youth again presented himself\nat the home of the maiden. \u201cMy friends,\u201d said he to the family; \u201cI am,\nas you know, or can easily perceive, extremely poor. I have no home nor\nsource of food; yet, as I anticipate that I shall be long on this\njourney, and as I neither possess nor know how to use a bow and arrow, I\ncome to humbly beseech your assistance. I will undertake this thing\nwhich has been proposed to me; but, in order that I may be enabled the\nmore easily to do so, I desire that you will present to me a sufficiency\nof food for my journey; or, if you will lend it to me, I shall be\nsatisfied.\u201d\n\nNow, the maiden\u2019s people were among the first in the nation, and\nwell-to-do in all ways. They most willingly consented to give the young\nman not only a sufficiency of food for days, but for months; and when he\nwent away that night he had all that he could carry of meal, coarse and\nfine, _piki_ or Moki wafer-rolls, tortillas, and abundant grease-cakes,\nwhich he well knew would be most tempting to Dogs.\n\nOn the fourth day thereafter,--for he had been making his weapons: some\nflint knives and a good hard war-club,--at evening, he again called at\neach of the holes and places the Dogs of the town inhabited, and he said\nto all of them: \u201cI shall leave forthwith on my journey, having provided\nmyself with a sufficiency of food for much feasting on the way. Like\nyourselves, I have become inured to hardship and am swift of foot, and\nby midnight I shall be half-way to Zu\u00f1i. As soon as the people are\nasleep, that they may not pelt you with stones and drive you back,\nfollow on the trail to Zu\u00f1i as fast as you can. I will await you by the\nside of the Black Mountains, near the Spring of the Night-hawks, and\nthere I will cook the provisions, that we may have a jolly feast and the\nmore strongly proceed on our journey the day following.\u201d\n\nThe Dogs gave him repeated assurances of their willingness to follow;\nand, heavily laden with his provisions, the youth, just at dusk, climbed\nunobserved down the nether side of the mesa and set out through the\nplains of sagebrush, over the hills far east of Moki, and so on along\nthe plateaus and valleys leading to this our town of Zu\u00f1i. At the place\nhe had appointed as a rendezvous he arrived not long before midnight,\nlighted a fire, unstrapped his provisions, and began to cook mush in\ngreat quantities.\n\nNow, after the lights in the windows of Moki began to go out--shutting\nup their red eyes, as it were, as the maidens of Moki shut up their\nbright eyes--there was tremendous activity observed among the Dogs. But\nthey made not much noise about it until every last Dog in town--as\nmotley a crowd of curs and mongrels as ever were seen, unless one might\nsee all the Dogs of Moki today--descended the mesa, and one by one\ngathered in a great pack, and started, baying, barking, and howling\nlouder and louder as they went along over the eastern hills on the trail\nwhich the youth had taken.\n\nBy-and-by he heard them coming; _te-ne-e-e-e_ they sounded as they ran;\n_wo-wo-o-o-o_ they came, baying and barking in all sorts of voices,\nnearer and nearer. So the youth prepared his provisions, and as the\nnearest of them came into the light of the fire, cried out: \u201cHo, my\nfriends, ye come! I am glad to see ye come! Sit ye round my camp-fire.\nLet us feast and be merry and lighten the load of my provisions.\nMethinks we will all carry some of them when we start out tomorrow.\u201d\n\nThereupon he liberally distributed mush, tortillas, and paper\nbread,--inviting the hot, tired Dogs to drink their fill from the spring\nand eat their fill from the feast. The Dogs, being very hungry, as Dogs\nalways are--and the more so from the memory of many a long fast--fell to\nwith avidity (and you know what that means with Dogs); and the\nShort-legs and Beagles would not have fared very well had the youth not\nconsidered them and held back a good supply of provisions against their\ntardy appearance.\n\nFinally, when all were assembled and had eaten, if not to their\nsatisfaction--that was impossible--yet to their temporary gratification,\na merry, noisy, much-wriggling crowd they became. Some lay down and\nrested, others were impatient for the journey; so that even before\ndaylight the youth, making up his bundle of provisions, again set forth\nat a swift trot, followed by this pack of Dogs which ran along either\nside of him and strung out on the trail the length of a race-course\nbehind him.\n\nBefore night, see this valiant youth quietly hiding himself away in one\nof the deep arroyos around the western end of Grand Mountain, and the\nfoot-hills of Twin Mountain, near which, as you know, the trail from\nMoki leads to our town. He is giving directions to the Dogs in a quiet\nmanner, and feeding them again, rather more sparingly than at first that\nthey may be anxious for their work.\n\nHe says to them: \u201cMy friends and brothers, lay yourselves about here,\neach one according to his color in places most suited for\nconcealment,--some near the gray sage-bushes; and you fellows with fine\nmarks on your backs keep out of sight, pray, in these deep holes, and\ncome in as our reserve force when we want you. Now, lie here patiently,\nfor you will have enough work to do, and can afford to rest. Tomorrow\nmorning, not long after sunrise, I shall doubtless come, with more\nprecipitation than willingness, toward your ambuscade, with a pack of\nDogs less worthy the name than yourselves at my heels. Be ready to help\nme; they are well-nurtured Dogs, and doubtless, if you like, you will be\nwise enough to make much of this fact.\u201d\n\nThe Dogs were well pleased with his proposition, and, in louder voices\nthan was prudent, attested their readiness to follow his suggestion,\ngoing so far as to assure him that he need have no fear whatsoever, that\nthey alone would vanquish the Zu\u00f1i nation--which, they had heard from\nother Dogs, was becoming rather lazy and indifferent in manly matters,\nDogs and all.\n\nThe night wore on; the youth had refreshed himself with sleep, and\nsomewhat after the herald-stars of the morning-star had appeared, he\nstealthily picked his way across our broad plain, toward the hill of\nZu\u00f1i; and out west there, only a short space from the sunset front of\nour town, he crouched down on a little terrace to wait.\n\nNot long after the morning-star had risen, a fine old Zu\u00f1i came out of\nhis house, shook his blanket, wrapped it round him, and came stealing\ndown in the daylight to the river side. After he had presented his\nmorning sacrifice toward the rising sun, he returned and sat down a\nmoment. He had no sooner seated himself than the wily, sinewy youth with\na quick motion sprang up, pulled the poor man over, and with his\nwar-club knocked his brains out, after which he leisurely took off the\nscalp of the one he had slain. He had barely finished this operation\nwhen he heard a ladder creak in one of the upper terraces of the town.\nHe quickly tucked the scalp in his belt, pulled himself together, and\nthrusting the body of the dead man into the bottom of a hole, which was\nvery near, crouched over it and waited. The footsteps of the man who was\ncoming sounded nearer and nearer. Presently he also came to this place;\nbut no sooner had he reached the terrace than the Moki youth leaped up\nand dealt him such a blow on the head that, without uttering a sound, he\ninstantly expired. This one he likewise scalped, and then another and\nanother he served in the same way, until, there being four slain men in\nthe pit, he had to drag some out of the way and throw them behind the\ndust-heap. Just as he returned another man sauntered down to the place.\nThe youth murdered him like the rest, and was busy skinning his scalp,\nwhen another who had followed him somewhat closely appeared at the hole,\nand discovering what was going on, ran toward the town for his weapons,\nshouting the war-cry of alarm as he went. Picking up the scalps and\nsnatching from the bodies of the slain their ornaments of greatest\nvalue, the Moki youth sped off over the plain.\n\nIn less time than it takes to tell it, the people of Zu\u00f1i were in arms;\ndogs barked, children cried, women screamed,--for no one knew how many\nthe enemy might be,--and the Priests of the Bow, in half-secured armor\nof buckskin, and with weapons in hand, came thundering down the hill and\nacross the plains in pursuit of the fleeing youth and in readiness to\noppose his band. Long before this crowd of warriors, now fully awake and\nwild with rage, had reached the spot, the youth plunged into the arroyo\nand called out to his Dogs: \u201cNow for it, my friends! They will be here\nin a minute! Do you hear them coming?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, ho!\u201d softly barked the Dogs; and they stiffened their claws and\ncrouched themselves to spring when the time should come.\n\nPresently on came the crowd of warriors, now feeling that they had but a\nsmall force, if indeed more than one man to oppose. And they came with\nsuch precipitation that they took the gray and dun and yellow-shaded\nDogs for so many rocks and heaps of sand, and were fairly in the midst\nof those brutes before they became aware of them at all. Death and\nashes! what a time there was of it! The youth fell in with his war-club,\nthe Dogs around, behind, and in front of them howling, snarling, biting,\ntearing, and shaking the Zu\u00f1is on every hand, until every one of the\nband was torn to pieces or so mangled that a few taps of the club of the\nyouth dispatched them. Those who had followed behind, not knowing what\nto think of it all, frantically ran back to their people,--the\nshame-begrimed cowards!--while the youth, with abundant leisure, went on\nskinning scalps, until, perceiving much activity in the distant town,\nconcluded it would be wise to abandon some few he had not finished. So,\ncatching up his pack of provisions and his bloody string of scalps\n(which was so long and thick he could hardly carry it, and which dragged\non the ground behind him), he trotted over the hills, followed by some\nof the Dogs--the others remaining behind, feeling more secure of\nswiftness--to take advantage of the ample feast spread before them.\n\nWhen the youth and the Dogs who followed him, or afterward joined him,\nhad again reached the great spring by the Black Mountains, leaving those\nwho pursued far behind, they stopped; and, building a fire of brush and\npine-knots, the youth cooked all the provisions he had. \u201cThanks this\nday, my friends and brothers!\u201d he cried to the Dogs. \u201cYe have nobly\nserved me. I will feast ye of the best.\u201d Whereupon he produced the\ngrease-cakes and the more delicate articles of food which he had\nreserved as a reward for the Dogs. They ate and ate, and loud were their\ndemonstrations of satisfaction. Then the youth, taking up the string of\nscalps again, attached them to a long pole, which, to keep the lower\nones from dragging on the ground, he elevated over his shoulder, and,\nstriking up a song of victory, he wound his way along the trail toward\nMoki.\n\nThe Dogs, crazy with victory and much glutted, could not contain\nthemselves, but they bow-wowed with delight and yelped and scurried\nabout, cutting circles dusty and wide around their father, the\nconquering youth. They hurried on so fast that by-and-by it was\nnoticeable that the Beagle Dogs fell in the rear. \u201cBy the music of\nmarrowbones!\u201d exclaimed some of the swifter of foot; \u201cwe will have to\nslacken our pace, father.\u201d Said they, addressing the youth: \u201cOur poor\nbrothers, the Short-legs, are evidently getting tired; they are falling\nfar in the rear, and it is not valorous, however great your victory and\nhowever strong your desire to proclaim it at home, to leave a worn-out\nbrother lagging behind. The enemy might come unawares and cut off his\nreturn and his daylight.\u201d Most reluctantly, therefore, they slackened\ntheir pace, and with shouts and yelps encouraged as much as possible the\nstump-legged Dogs following behind.\n\nNow, on that day in Moki there had been much surprise expressed at the\nabsence of the Dogs, except those which were so young or so old that\nthey could not travel; and the people began to think that some devil or\nall the wizards in Mokidom had been conjuring their Dogs away from them,\nwhen toward evening they heard a distant sound, which was the\napproaching victors\u2019 demonstration of rejoicing, and clear above all was\nthe song of victory shouted by the lusty youth as he came bringing his\nscalps along. \u201cWoo, woo, woo!\u201d the Dogs sounded as they came across the\nvalley and approached the foot of the mesa; and when the people looked\ndown and saw the blood and dirt with which every Dog was covered, they\nknew not what to make of it,--whether their Dogs had been enticed away\nand foully beaten, or whether they had taken after a herd of antelope,\nperhaps, and vanquished them. But presently they espied in the midst of\nthe motley crowd of Curs the tall lank form of the vagabond youth and\nheard his lusty song. The youths who had been jilted by the maiden at\nonce had their own ideas. Some of them sneaked away; others ground their\nteeth and covered their eyes, filled with rage and shame; while the\nelder-men of the nation, seeing what feats of valor this neglected youth\nhad accomplished, glorified him with answering songs of victory and\ngathered in solemn council, as if for a most honored and precious guest,\nto receive him.\n\nSo, victorious and successful in all ways, the outcast dog of a youth\nwho went to Zu\u00f1i and returned the hero of the Moki nation right\nwillingly was accepted by this beauteous maiden as her husband after\nthe ceremonies of initiation and purification had been performed over\nhim.\n\nAh, well! that was very fine; but all this praise of one who had been\ndespised and abused by themselves, and, more than all, the possession of\nsuch a beautiful wife, wrought fierce jealousy in the breasts of the\nmany jilted lovers; making those who had looked askance at one another\nbefore, true friends and firm brothers in a single cause--the undoing of\nthis lucky vagabond youth. Nor were they alone in this desire, for\nbehold! copying their lucky sister, all the pretty maidens in Moki\ndeclared that they would marry no one who did not show himself at least\nin some degree heroic, like the youth of the dog-holes who had married\ntheir pretty sister. It therefore came about that the whole tribe of\nMoki, so far as the young men were concerned, became a company of jilted\nlovers, and all the maidens became confirmed in their resolutions of\nvirgin maidenhood.\n\nThe jilted lovers got together one night in a cautious sort of way (for\nthey were all afraid of this hero) and held a council. But the fools\ndidn\u2019t think of the Dogs lying around outside, who heard what they said.\nThey concluded the best way to get even with this youth was to kill him;\nbut how to kill him was the problem, for they were cowards. \u201cWe will get\nup a hunt,\u201d said one; \u201cand make friends with him and ask him to go,\npaying him all sorts of attention, and ask him to instruct us in the\narts of war, the wretch! He will readily join us in our hunting\nexcursion, and some of us will sling a throwing-stick at him and finish\nthe conceited fellow\u2019s days!\u201d\n\nNow, the Dogs scrambled off immediately and informed their friend and\nbrother what was going on.\n\nHe said: \u201cAll right! I will accept their advances and go with them on\nthe hunt.\u201d\n\nHe went off that night to a cave, where he had often sought shelter from\nthe wind when driven out of the town of Walpi, and thus had made\nacquaintance with those most unerring travellers in crooked places--the\nCave-swallows. He went to one of them, an elderly, wise bird, and,\naddressing him as \u201cGrandfather,\u201d told him what was going on.\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the old bird; \u201cI will help you.\u201d And he made a\nboomerang for the youth which had the power to fly around bushes and\ndown into gullies; and if well thrown, of course, it could not be dodged\nby any rabbit, however swift of foot or sly in hiding. Having finished\nthis boomerang, he told the youth to take it and use it freely in\nhunting. The youth thanked him, and returning to his town passed a\npeaceful night.\n\nWhen he appeared the next morning, the others greeted him\npleasantly--those who happened to see him--to which greetings he replied\nwith equal cordiality. They were so importunate with the priest-chiefs\nto be allowed to undertake a grand rabbit-hunt that these fathers of the\npeople, always desirous of contributing to the happiness of their\nchildren, ordered a grand hunt for the very next day. So everybody was\nbusy forthwith in making throwing-sticks and boomerangs.\n\nThe next day all the able-bodied youth of the town, selecting the hero\nof whom we have told as their leader, took their way to the great plain\nsouth of Moki, and there, spreading out into an enormous circle, they\ndrove hundreds of rabbits closer and closer together among the sagebrush\nin the center of the valley. Some of them succeeded in striking down\none--some of them three or four--but ere long every one observed that\neach time the youth threw his stick he struck a rabbit and secured it,\nuntil he had so many that he was forced to call some boys who had\nfollowed along to carry them for him.\n\nAlready inflamed by their jealousies to great anger, what was the\nchagrin of this crowd of dandies, now that this youth whom they so\nheartily despised actually surpassed them even in hunting rabbits! They\ngnashed their teeth with rage, and one of them in a moment of\nexcitement, when two or three rabbits were trying to escape, took\ndeliberate aim at the youth and threw his boomerang at him. The youth,\nwho was wily, sprang into the air so high, pretending meanwhile to throw\nhis boomerang, that the missile missed his vital parts, but struck his\nleg and apparently broke it, so that he fell down senseless in the midst\nof the crowd; and the people set up a great shout--some of lamentation,\nsome of exultation.\n\n\u201cLet him lie there and rot!\u201d said the angry suitors, catching up their\nown rabbits and making off for the pueblo. But some of the old men, who\ndeplored this seeming accident of the youth, ran as fast as they could\ntoward the town--fearing to raise him lest they should make his hurt\nworse--for medicine.\n\nWhen the youth had been left alone, he opened his eyes and smiled. Then,\ntaking from his pouch a medicine unfailing in its effects, applied it to\nthe bruised spot and quickly became relieved of pain, if not even of\ninjury. Rising, he looked about and found the rabbits where,\npanic-stricken, the boys had dropped them and fled away. He made up a\nhuge bundle, and not long before sunset, behold! singing merrily, he\ncame marching, though limping somewhat, through the plain before the\nfoot-hills of Moki, bearing an enormous burden of rabbits. He climbed\nthe mesa, greeted every one pleasantly as though nothing had occurred,\ntook his way to his home, and became admired of all the women of Moki,\nyoung and old, as a paragon of valor and manhood.\n\nIt became absolutely necessary after that, of course,--for these\nfaint-hearted dandies tried no more tricks with the youth,--for anyone\nwho would marry a Moki maiden to show himself a man in some way or\nother; and, as the ugliest and most neglected of children generally turn\nout sharpest because they have to look out for themselves, so it happens\nthat to this day the husbands of Moki are generally very ugly; but one\nthing is certain--they are men.\n\nReflect on these things, ye young ones and youths.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE COYOTE JOINED THE DANCE OF THE BURROWING-OWLS\n\n\nYou may know the country that lies south of the valley in which our town\nstands. You travel along the trail which winds round the hill our\nancients called _Ishana-tak\u2019yapon_,--which means the Hill of Grease, for\nthe rocks sometimes shine in the light of the sun at evening, and it is\nsaid that strange things occurred there in the days of the ancients,\nwhich makes them thus to shine, while rocks of the kind in other places\ndo not,--you travel on up this trail, crossing over the arroyos and\nfoot-hills of the great mesa called Middle Mountain, until you come to\nthe foot of the cliffs. Then you climb up back and forth, winding round\nand round, until you reach the top of the mountain, which is as flat as\nthe floor of a house, merely being here and there traversed by small\nvalleys covered with pi\u00f1on and cedar, and threaded by trails made not\nonly by the feet of our people but by deer and other animals. And so you\ngo on and on, until, hardly knowing it, you have descended from the top\nof Middle Mountain, and found yourself in a wide plain covered with\ngrass, and here and there clumps of trees. Beyond this valley is an\nelevated sandy plain, rather sunken in the middle, so that when it rains\nthe water filters down into the soil of the depressed portion (which is\nwide enough to be a country in itself) and nourishes the grasses there;\nso that most of the year they grow green and sweet.\n\nNow, a long, long time ago, in this valley or basin there lived a\nvillage of Prairie-dogs, on fairly peaceable terms with Rattlesnakes,\nAdders, Chameleons, Horned-toads, and Burrowing-owls. With the Owls they\nwere especially friendly, looking at them as creatures of great gravity\nand sanctity. For this reason these Prairie-dogs and their companions\nnever disturbed the councils or ceremonies of the Burrowing-owls, but\ntreated them most respectfully, keeping at a distance from them when\ntheir dances were going on.\n\nIt chanced one day that the Burrowing-owls were having a great dance all\nto themselves, rather early in the morning. The dance they were engaged\nin was one peculiarly prized by them, requiring no little dexterity in\nits execution. Each dancer, young man or maiden, carried upon his or her\nhead a bowl of foam, and though their legs were crooked and their\nmotions disjointed, they danced to the whistling of some and the\nclapping beaks of others, in perfect unison, and with such dexterity\nthat they never spilled a speck of the foam on their sleek mantles of\ndun-black feather-work.\n\nIt chanced this morning of the Foam-dance that a Coyote was nosing about\nfor Grasshoppers and Prairie-dogs. So quite naturally he was prowling\naround the by-streets in the borders of the Prairie-dog town. His house\nwhere he lived with his old grandmother stood back to the westward, just\nover the elevations that bounded Sunken Country, among the rocks. He\nheard the click-clack of the musicians and their shrill, funny little\nsong:\n\n \u201cI yami hota utchu tchapikya,\n Tokos! tokos! tokos! tokos!\u201d\n\nSo he pricked up his ears, and lifting his tail, trotted forward toward\nthe level place between the hillocks and doorways of the village, where\nthe Owls were dancing in a row. He looked at them with great curiosity,\nsquatting on his haunches, the more composedly to observe them. Indeed,\nhe became so much interested and amused by their shambling motions and\nclever evolutions, that he could no longer contain his curiosity. So he\nstepped forward, with a smirk and a nod toward the old master of\nceremonies, and said: \u201cMy father, how are you and your children these\nmany days?\u201d\n\n\u201cContented and happy,\u201d replied the old Owl, turning his attention to the\ndancing again.\n\n\u201cYes, but I observe you are dancing,\u201d said the Coyote. \u201cA very fine\ndance, upon my word! Charming! Charming! And why should you be dancing\nif you were not contented and happy, to be sure?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are dancing,\u201d responded the Owl, \u201cboth for our pleasure and for the\ngood of the town.\u201d\n\n\u201cTrue, true,\u201d replied the Coyote; \u201cbut what\u2019s that which looks like foam\nthese dancers are carrying on their heads, and why do they dance in so\nlimping a fashion?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou see, my friend,\u201d said the Owl, turning toward the Coyote, \u201cwe hold\nthis to be a very sacred performance--very sacred indeed. Being such,\nthese my children are initiated and so trained in the mysteries of the\nsacred society of which this is a custom that they can do very strange\nthings in the observance of our ceremonies. You ask what it is that\nlooks like foam they are balancing on their heads. Look more closely,\nfriend. Do you not observe that it is their own grandmothers\u2019 heads they\nhave on, the feathers turned white with age?\u201d\n\n\u201cBy my eyes!\u201d exclaimed the Coyote, blinking and twitching his whiskers;\n\u201cit seems so.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd you ask also why they limp as they dance,\u201d said the Owl. \u201cNow, this\nlimp is essential to the proper performance of our dance--so essential,\nin fact, that in order to attain to it these my children go through the\npain of having their legs broken. Instead of losing by this, they gain\nin a great many ways. Good luck always follows them. They are quite as\nspry as they were before, and enjoy, moreover, the distinction of\nperforming a dance which no other people or creatures in the world are\ncapable of!\u201d\n\n\u201cDust and devils!\u201d ejaculated the Coyote. \u201cThis is passing strange. A\nmost admirable dance, upon my word! Why, every bristle on my body keeps\ntime to the music and their steps! Look here, my friend, don\u2019t you think\nthat I could learn that dance?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d replied the old Owl; \u201cit is rather hard to learn, and you\nhaven\u2019t been initiated, you know; but, still, if you are determined that\nyou would like to join the dance--by the way, have you a grandmother?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, and a fine old woman she is,\u201d said he, twitching his mouth in the\ndirection of his house. \u201cShe lives there with me. I dare say she is\nlooking after my breakfast now.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d continued the old Owl, \u201cif you care to join in our dance,\nfulfill the conditions, and I think we can receive you into our order.\u201d\nAnd he added, aside: \u201cThe silly fool; the sneaking, impertinent wretch!\nI will teach him to be sticking that sharp nose of his into other\npeople\u2019s affairs!\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right! All right!\u201d cried the Coyote, excitedly. \u201cWill it last\nlong?\u201d\n\n\u201cUntil the sun is so bright that it hurts our eyes,\u201d said the Owl; \u201ca\nlong time yet.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right! All right! I\u2019ll be back in a little while,\u201d said the Coyote;\nand, switching his tail into the air, away he ran toward his home. When\nhe came to the house, he saw his old grandmother on the roof, which was\na rock beside his hole, gathering fur from some skins which he had\nbrought home, to make up a bed for the Coyote\u2019s family.\n\n\u201cHa, my blessed grandmother!\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cby means of your aid,\nwhat a fine thing I shall be able to do!\u201d\n\nThe old woman was singing to herself when the Coyote dashed up to the\nroof where she was sitting, and, catching up a convenient leg-bone,\nwhacked her over the pate and sawed her head off with the teeth of a\ndeer. All bloody and soft as it was, he clapped it on his own head and\nraised himself on his hindlegs, bracing his tail against the ground,\nand letting his paws drop with the toes outspread, to imitate as nearly\nas possible the drooping wings of the dancing Owls. He found that it\nworked very well; so, descending with the head in one paw and a stone in\nthe other, he found a convenient sharp-edged rock, and, laying his legs\nacross it, hit them a tremendous crack with the stone, which broke them,\nto be sure, into splinters.\n\n\u201cBeloved Powers! Oh!\u201d howled the Coyote. \u201cOh-o-o-o-o! the dance may be a\nfine thing, but the initiation is anything else!\u201d\n\nHowever, with his faith unabated, he shook himself together and got up\nto walk. But he could walk only with his paws; his hindlegs dragged\nhelplessly behind him. Nevertheless, with great pain, and getting weaker\nand weaker every step of the way, he made what haste he could back to\nthe Prairie-dog town, his poor old grandmother\u2019s head slung over his\nshoulders.\n\nWhen he approached the dancers,--for they were still dancing,--they\npretended to be greatly delighted with their proselyte, and greeted him,\nnotwithstanding his rueful countenance, with many congratulatory\nepithets, mingled with very proper and warm expressions of welcome. The\nCoyote looked sick and groaned occasionally and kept looking around at\nhis feet, as though he would like to lick them. But the old Owl extended\nhis wing and cautioned him not to interfere with the working power of\nfaith in this essential observance, and invited him (with a _hem_ that\nvery much resembled a suppressed giggle), to join in their dance. The\nCoyote smirked and bowed and tried to stand up gracefully on his stumps,\nbut fell over, his grandmother\u2019s head rolling around in the dirt. He\npicked up the grisly head, clapped it on his crown again and raised\nhimself, and with many a howl, which he tried in vain to check, began to\nprance around; but ere long tumbled over again. The Burrowing-owls were\nfilled with such merriment at his discomfiture that they laughed until\nthey spilled the foam all down their backs and bosoms; and, with a\nparting fling at the Coyote which gave him to understand that he had\nmade a fine fool of himself, and would know better than to pry into\nother people\u2019s business next time, skipped away to a safe distance from\nhim.\n\nThen, seeing how he had been tricked, the Coyote fell to howling and\nclapping his thighs; and, catching sight of his poor grandmother\u2019s head,\nall bloody and begrimed with dirt, he cried out in grief and anger:\n\u201cAlas! alas! that it should have come to this! You little devils! I\u2019ll\nbe even with you! I\u2019ll smoke you out of your holes.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat will you smoke us out with?\u201d tauntingly asked the Burrowing-owls.\n\n\u201cHa! you\u2019ll find out. With yucca!\u201d\n\n\u201cO! O! ha! ha!\u201d laughed the Owls. \u201cThat is our succotash!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, well! I\u2019ll smoke you out!\u201d yelled the Coyote, stung by their\ntaunts.\n\n\u201cWhat with?\u201d cried the Owls.\n\n\u201cGrease-weed.\u201d\n\n\u201cHe, ha! ho, ho! We make our mush-stew of that!\u201d\n\n\u201cHa! but I\u2019ll smoke you out, nevertheless, you little beasts!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat with? What with?\u201d shouted the Owls.\n\n\u201cYellow-top weeds,\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cHa, ha! All right; smoke away! We make our sweet gruel with that, you\nfool!\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll fix you! I\u2019ll smoke you out! I\u2019ll suffocate the very last one of\nyou!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat with? What with?\u201d shouted the Owls, skipping around on their\ncrooked feet.\n\n\u201cPitch-pine,\u201d snarled the Coyote.\n\nThis frightened the Owls, for pitch-pine, even to this day, is sickening\nto them. Away they plunged into their holes, pell-mell.\n\nThen the Coyote looked at his poor old grandmother\u2019s begrimed and bloody\nhead, and cried out--just as Coyotes do now at sunset, I suppose--\u201cOh,\nmy poor, poor grandmother! So this is what they have caused me to do to\nyou!\u201d And, tormented both by his grief and his pain, he took up the head\nof his grandmother and crawled back as best he could to his house.\n\nWhen he arrived there he managed to climb up to the roof, where her body\nlay stiff. He chafed her legs and sides, and washed the blood and dirt\nfrom her head, and got a bit of sinew, and sewed her head to her body as\ncarefully as he could and as hastily. Then he opened her mouth, and,\nputting his muzzle to it, blew into her throat, in the hope of\nresuscitating her; but the wind only leaked out from the holes in her\nneck, and she gave no signs of animation. Then the Coyote mixed some pap\nof fine toasted meal and water and poured it down her throat, addressing\nher with vehement expressions of regret at what he had done, and apology\nand solicitation that she should not mind, as he didn\u2019t mean it, and\nimploring her to revive. But the pap only trickled out between the\nstitches in her neck, and she grew colder and stiffer all the while; so\nthat at last the Coyote gave it up, and, moaning, he betook himself to a\nnear clump of pi\u00f1on trees, intent upon vengeance and designing to gather\npitch with which to smoke the Owls to death. But, weakened by his\ninjuries, and filled with grief and shame and mortification, when he got\nthere he could only lie down.\n\nHe was so engrossed in howling and thinking of his woes and pains that a\nHorned-toad, who saw him, and who hated him because of the insults he\nhad frequently suffered from him and his kind, crawled into the throat\nof the beast without his noticing it. Presently the little creature\nstruck up a song:\n\n \u201cTsakina muuu-ki\n Iyami Kushina tsoiyakya\n Aisiwaiki muki, muki,\n Muuu ka!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh-a-a-a-a-a,\u201d the Coyote was groaning. But when he heard this song,\napparently far off, and yet so near, he felt very strangely inside, so\nhe thought and no doubt wondered if it were the song of some musician.\nAt any rate, he lifted his head and looked all around, but hearing\nnothing, lay down again and bemoaned his fate.\n\nThen the Horned-toad sang again. This time the Coyote called out\nimmediately, and the Horned-toad answered: \u201cHere I am.\u201d But look as he\nwould, the Coyote could not find the Toad. So he listened for the song\nagain, and heard it, and asked who it was that was singing. The\nHorned-toad replied that it was he. But still the Coyote could not find\nhim. A fourth time the Horned-toad sang, and the Coyote began to suspect\nthat it was under him. So he lifted himself to see; and one of the\nspines on the Horned-toad\u2019s neck pricked him, and at the same time the\nlittle fellow called out: \u201cHere I am, you idiot, inside of you! I came\nupon you here, and being a medicine-man of some prominence, I thought I\nwould explore your vitals and see what was the matter.\u201d\n\n\u201cBy the souls of my ancestors!\u201d exclaimed the Coyote, \u201cbe careful what\nyou do in there!\u201d\n\nThe Horned-toad replied by laying his hand on the Coyote\u2019s liver, and\nexclaiming: \u201cWhat is this I feel?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere?\u201d said the Coyote.\n\n\u201cDown here.\u201d\n\n\u201cMerciful daylight! it is my liver, without which no one can have\nsolidity of any kind, or a proper vitality. Be very careful not to\ninjure that; if you do, I shall die at once, and what will become of my\npoor wife and children?\u201d\n\nThen the Horned-toad climbed up to the stomach of the Coyote. \u201cWhat is\nthis, my friend?\u201d said he, feeling the sides of the Coyote\u2019s food-bag.\n\n\u201cWhat is it like?\u201d asked the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWrinkled,\u201d said the Horned-toad, \u201cand filled with a fearful mess of\nstuff!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! mercy! mercy! good daylight! My precious friend, be very careful!\nThat is the very source of my being--my stomach itself!\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the Horned-toad. Then he moved on somewhat farther and\ntouched the heart of the Coyote, which startled him fearfully. \u201cWhat is\nthis?\u201d cried the Horned-toad.\n\n\u201cMercy, mercy! what are you doing?\u201d exclaimed the Coyote.\n\n\u201cNothing--feeling of your vitals,\u201d was the reply. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, what is it like?\u201d said the Coyote.\n\n\u201cShaped like a pine-nut,\u201d said the Horned-toad, \u201cas nearly as I can make\nout; it keeps leaping so.\u201d\n\n\u201cLeaping, is it?\u201d howled the Coyote. \u201cMercy! my friend, get away from\nthere! That is the very heart of my being, the thread that ties my\nexistence, the home of my emotions, and my knowledge of daylight. Go\naway from there, do, I pray you! If you should scratch it ever so\nlittle, it would be the death of me, and what would my wife and children\ndo?\u201d\n\n\u201cHey!\u201d said the Horned-toad, \u201cyou wouldn\u2019t be apt to insult me and my\npeople any more if I touched you up there a little, would you?\u201d And he\nhooked one of his horns into the Coyote\u2019s heart. The Coyote gave one\ngasp, straightened out his limbs, and expired.\n\n\u201cHa, ha! you villain! Thus would you have done to me, had you found the\nchance; thus unto you\u201d--saying which he found his way out and sought the\nnearest water-pocket he could find.\n\n * * * * *\n\nSo you see from this, which took place in the days of the ancients, it\nmay be inferred that the instinct of meddling with everything that did\nnot concern him, and making a universal nuisance of himself, and\ndesiring to imitate everything that he sees, ready to jump into any trap\nthat is laid for him, is a confirmed instinct with the Coyote, for those\nare precisely his characteristics today.\n\nFurthermore, Coyotes never insult Horned-toads nowadays, and they keep\nclear of Burrowing-owls. And ever since then the Burrowing-owls have\nbeen speckled with gray and white all over their backs and bosoms,\nbecause their ancestors spilled foam over themselves in laughing at the\nsilliness of the Coyote.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COYOTE WHO KILLED THE DEMON S\u00cdUIUKI:\n\nOR WHY COYOTES RUN THEIR NOSES INTO DEADFALLS\n\n\nIt was very long ago, in the days of the ancients. There stood a village\nin the ca\u00f1on south of Thunder Mountain where the Gods of Prey all lived\nwith their sisters and mothers: the Mountain Lion, the great Black Bear,\nthe Wildcat, the Gray Wolf, the Eagle, and even the Mole--all the Gods\nof Prey lived there together with their mothers and sisters. Day after\nday they went out hunting, for hunting was their business of life, and\nthey were great hunters.\n\nNow, right up on the edge of Thunder Mountain there lived a spotted\nDemon, named S\u00eduiuki, and whenever the people of the towns round about\nwent hunting, he lay in wait for them and ate them up.\n\nAfter a long while the Gods of Prey grew discontented, and they said to\none another: \u201cWhat in the world can we do? None of the children of men\never make sacrifices to us, for, whenever our children among men go out\nhunting, this Demon who lives on the top of Thunder Mountain destroys\nthem and eats them up. What in the world can be done?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt would be a good thing if we could kill him,\u201d said some of them.\n\nNow, just down below the house of the Demon, in Wolf Ca\u00f1on, lived a\nCoyote, and he had found out where the Gods of Prey lived, and whenever\nhe wanted a feast of sinew and gristle, he went below their houses and\ngnawed at the bones that they had thrown away, and thus it happened that\nwhen the gods were talking together in this way he was near their\ndoorway gnawing a bone, and he heard all they said.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said one or two of the others, \u201cand if anybody will go and kill\nS\u00eduiuki, we will give him our sister to marry.\u201d\n\n\u201cAha!\u201d said the Coyote to himself. \u201cHa, ha!\u201d--and he dropped the bone he\nwas gnawing and cut off for home as fast as ever he could.\n\nNext morning, bright and early, he began to dig into the side of the\nca\u00f1on below the Demon\u2019s home, and after he had dug a great hollow in the\nside of the arroyo, he rolled a heavy stone into it, and found another,\nwhich he placed beside it. Then he brought a great many leg-bones of\ndeer and antelope. Then he found a large bowl and put a lot of yellow\nmedicine-fluid in it, and placed it beside the rock. He then sat down\nand began to crack the leg-bones with the two stones he had brought\nthere.\n\nThe old Demon was not in the habit of rising very early, but when he\narose that morning he came out and sat down on the edge of the cliff;\nthere the Coyote was, battering away at the bones and pretending to\nbathe his own lips with the medicine-fluid.\n\n\u201cI wonder what in the world that little sneak is doing down there,\u201d\nsaid the old Demon. So he put on his war-badge and took his bow and\narrows, as though he were going out to hunt, and started down to where\nthe Coyote was.\n\n\u201cHello!\u201d said the Coyote, \u201chow did you pass the night?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat in the world are you doing here?\u201d asked the Demon.\n\n\u201cWhy, don\u2019t you know?\u201d replied the Coyote. \u201cThis is the way I train\nmyself for running, so as to catch the deer; I can run faster than any\ndeer in the country. With my medicine, here, I take the swiftness out of\nthese bones.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it possible?\u201d said the old Demon.\n\n\u201cOf course it is,\u201d said the Coyote. \u201cThere is no deer that can run away\nfrom me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you show me?\u201d said the Demon, eagerly.\n\n\u201cWhy, yes, of course I will; and then we will go hunting together.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood, good!\u201d said the old Demon. \u201cI have a hard time catching deer and\nantelope.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, now, you sit down right over there and watch me,\u201d said the\nCoyote, \u201cand I will show you all about it.\u201d\n\nSo he laid his left leg over the rock, and then slily took an antelope\nbone and laid it by the side of it. Then he picked up a large stone and\nstruck it as hard as ever he could against the bone. Whack! went the\nstone, and it split the bone into splinters; and the Coyote pretended\nthat it was the bone of his own leg.\n\n\u201cAye! Ah! Oh!\u201d exclaimed he. \u201cBut then it will get well!\u201d Still crying\n\u201cOh! Ah!\u201d he splashed the leg with the medicine-water and rubbed it.\n\u201cDidn\u2019t I tell you?\u201d said he, \u201cit is all right now.\u201d And then away he\nwent and ran like lightning round and round on the plain below, and\nrushed back again. \u201cDidn\u2019t I tell you so?\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cFury! what a runner it makes out of you,\u201d said the old Demon, and his\neyes stuck out more than ever. \u201cLet me try it now.\u201d\n\n\u201cHold on, hold on,\u201d said the Coyote; \u201cI have not half finished yet.\u201d\n\nSo he repeated the experiment with his other leg, and made great ado, as\nif it hurt him more than ever. But, pretending to cure himself with the\nmedicine-water, he ran round and round on the plain below so fast that\nhe fairly left a streak of dust behind him.\n\n\u201cWhy, indeed, you are one of the fastest runners I ever saw!\u201d said the\nDemon, rubbing his eyes.\n\nThen the Coyote repeated the experiment first with his left paw and then\nwith his right; and the last time he ran more swiftly than before.\n\n\u201cWhy, do you mean to say that if I do that I can run as fast as you do?\u201d\nsaid the Demon.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d replied the Coyote. \u201cBut it will hurt you.\u201d\n\n\u201cHo! who cares for a little hurt?\u201d said the Demon.\n\n\u201cOh! but it hurts terribly,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cand I am afraid you won\u2019t\nhave the pluck to go through with it.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think I am a baby?\u201d said the old Demon, getting up,--\u201cor a\nwoman, that I should be afraid to pound my legs and arms?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I only thought I\u2019d tell you how much it hurts,\u201d said the Coyote;\n\u201cbut if you want to try it yourself, why, go ahead. There\u2019s one thing\ncertain: when you make yourself as swift as I am, there\u2019s no deer in all\nthe country that can get away from us two.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat shall I do?\u201d said the Demon.\n\n\u201cYou just sit right down there, and I\u2019ll show you how,\u201d said the Coyote.\nSo the Demon sat down by the rock.\n\n\u201cThere, now, you just lay your leg right over that stone and take the\nother rock and strike your leg just as hard as you can; and as soon as\nyou have done, bathe it in the medicine-water. Then do just the same way\nto the other.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the Demon. So he laid his leg over the rock, and\npicking up the other stone, brought it down with might and main across\nhis thigh--so hard, indeed, that he crushed the bone into splinters.\n\n\u201cOh, my! Oh, my! what shall I do?\u201d shouted the Demon.\n\n\u201cBe patient, be patient; it will get well,\u201d said the Coyote, and he\nsplashed it with the medicine-fluid.\n\nThen, picking up the stone again, the Demon hit the other thigh even\nharder, from pain.\n\n\u201cIt will get well, my friend; it will get well,\u201d shouted the Coyote; and\nhe splashed more of the medicine-water on the two wounded legs.\n\nThen the Demon picked up the stone once more, and, laying his left arm\nacross the other stone, pounded that also until it was broken.\n\n\u201cHold on; let me bathe it for you,\u201d said the Coyote. \u201cDoes it hurt? Oh,\nwell, it will get well. Just wait until you have doctored the other arm,\nand then in a few minutes you will be all right.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, dear! Oh, dear!\u201d groaned the Demon. \u201cHow in the world can I doctor\nthe other arm, for my left arm is broken?\u201d\n\n\u201cLay it across the rock, my friend,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cand I\u2019ll doctor\nit for you.\u201d\n\nSo the Demon did as he was bidden, and the Coyote brought the stone down\nwith might and main against his arm. \u201cHave patience, my friend, have\npatience,\u201d said he, as he bathed the injured limb with more of the\nmedicine-water. But the Demon only groaned and howled, and rolled over\nand over in the dust with pain.\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d laughed the Coyote, as he keeled a somersault over the rocks\nand ran off over the plain. \u201cHow do you feel now, old man?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut it hurts! It hurts!\u201d cried the Demon. \u201cI shall never get well; it\nwill kill me!\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course it will,\u201d laughed the Coyote. \u201cThat\u2019s just what I wanted it\nto do, you old fool!\u201d\n\nSo the old Demon lay down and died from sheer pain.\n\nThen the Coyote took the Demon\u2019s knife from him, and, cutting open his\nbreast, tore out his heart, wind-pipe, and all. Then, stealing the\nwar-badge that the Demon had worn, he cut away as fast as ever he could\nfor the home of the Prey-gods. Before noon he neared their house, and,\njust as he ran up into the plaza in front of it, the youngest sister of\nthe Prey-gods came out to hang up some meat to dry. Now, her brothers\nhad all gone hunting; not one of them was at home.\n\n\u201cI say, wife,\u201d said the Coyote. \u201cWife! Wife!\u201d\n\n\u201cHumph!\u201d said the girl. \u201cImpertinent scoundrel! I wonder where he is and\nwho he is that has the impudence to call me his wife, when he knows that\nI have never been married!\u201d\n\n\u201cWife! Wife!\u201d shouted the Coyote again.\n\n\u201cAway with you, you shameless rascal!\u201d cried the girl, in indignation.\nThen she looked around and spied the Coyote sitting there on the\nash-heap, with his nose in the air, as though he were the biggest fellow\nin the world.\n\n\u201cClear out, you wretch!\u201d cried the girl.\n\n\u201cSoftly, softly,\u201d replied the Coyote. \u201cDo you remember what your\nbrothers said last night?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat was that?\u201d said the girl.\n\n\u201cWhy, whoever would kill the speckled Demon, they declared, should have\nyou for his wife.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, what of that?\u201d said the girl.\n\n\u201cOh, nothing,\u201d replied the Coyote, \u201conly I\u2019ve killed him!\u201d And, holding\nup the Demon\u2019s heart and war-badge, he stuck his nose in the air again.\n\nSo the poor girl said not a word, but sat there until the Coyote called\nout: \u201cI say, wife, come down and take me up; I can\u2019t climb the ladders.\u201d\n\nSo the poor girl went down the ladder, took her foul-smelling husband\nin her arms, and climbed up with him.\n\n\u201cNow, take me in with you,\u201d said the Coyote. So she did as she was\nbidden. Then she was about to mix some dough, but the Coyote kept\ngetting in her way.\n\n\u201cGet out of the way a minute, won\u2019t you?\u201d said the girl, \u201cuntil I cook\nsomething for you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI want you to come and sit down with me,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cand let me\nkiss you, for you know you are my wife, now.\u201d So the poor girl had to\nsubmit to the ill-smelling creature\u2019s embraces.\n\nPresently along came her brother, the Gray Wolf, but he was a very\ngood-natured sort of fellow; so he received the Coyote pleasantly. Then\nalong came the Bear, with a big antelope over his shoulder; but he\ndidn\u2019t say anything, for he was a lazy, good-natured fellow. Then\npresently the other brothers came in, one by one; but the Mountain Lion\nwas so late in returning that they began to look anxiously out for him.\nWhen they saw him coming from the north with more meat and more game\nthan all the others together had brought, he was evidently not in good\nhumor, for as he approached the house he exclaimed, with a howl:\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d\n\n\u201cThere he goes again,\u201d said the brothers and sisters, all in a chorus.\n\u201cAlways out of temper with something.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d exclaimed the Mountain Lion again, louder than before.\nAnd, as he mounted the ladder, he exclaimed for a third time:\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d and, throwing his meat down, entered swearing and\ngrowling until his brothers were ashamed of him, and told him he had\nbetter behave himself.\n\n\u201cCome and eat,\u201d said the sister, as she brought a bowl of meat and put\nit on the floor.\n\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d again exclaimed the Mountain Lion, as he came nearer and\nsat down to eat. \u201cWhat in the world is the matter with you, sister? You\nsmell just like a Coyote. _Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d\n\n\u201cHave you no more decency than to come home and scold your sister in\nthat way?\u201d exclaimed the Wolf. \u201cI\u2019m disgusted with you.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d reiterated the Mountain Lion.\n\nNow, when the Coyote had heard the Mountain Lion coming, he had sneaked\noff into a corner; but he stuck his sharp nose out, and the Mountain\nLion espied it. \u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d said he. \u201cSling that bad-smelling beast\nout of the house! Kick him out!\u201d cried the old man, with a growl. So the\nsister, fearing that her brother would eat her husband up, took the\nCoyote in her arms and carried him into another room.\n\n\u201cNow, stay there and keep still, for brother is very cross; but then he\nis always cross if things don\u2019t go right,\u201d she said.\n\nSo when evening came her brothers began to discuss where they would go\nhunting the next day; and the Coyote, who was listening at the door,\nheard them. So he called out: \u201cWife! Wife!\u201d\n\n\u201c_Shom-me!_\u201d remarked old Long Tail. \u201cShut up, you dirty whelp.\u201d And as\nthe sister arose to go to see what her husband wanted, the Mountain\nLion remarked: \u201cYou had better sling that foul-smelling cub of yours\nover the roof.\u201d\n\nNo sooner had the girl entered than the Coyote began to brag what a\nrunner he was, and to cut around at a great rate.\n\n\u201c_Shom-me!_\u201d exclaimed the Mountain Lion again. \u201cA Coyote always will\nmake a Coyote of himself, foul-smelling wretch! _Hu-hu-ya!_\u201d\n\n\u201cShut up, and behave yourself!\u201d cried the Wolf. \u201cDon\u2019t you know any\nbetter than to talk about your brother-in-law in that way?\u201d But neither\nthe Coyote nor the girl could sleep that night for the growlings and\nroarings of their big brother, the Long Tail.\n\nWhen the brothers began to prepare for the hunt the next morning, out\ncame the Coyote all ready to accompany them. \u201cYou, you?\u201d said the\nMountain Lion. \u201cYou going to hunt with us? You conceited sneak!\u201d\n\n\u201cLet him go if he wants to,\u201d said the Wolf.\n\n\u201c_Hu-hu-ya!_ Fine company!\u201d remarked the Mountain Lion. \u201cIf you fellows\nwant to walk with him, you may. There\u2019s one thing certain, I\u2019ll not be\nseen in his company,\u201d and away strode the old fellow, lashing his tail\nand growling as he went. So the Coyote, taking a luncheon of dried meat\nthat his wife put up for him, sneaked along behind with his tail\ndragging in the dust. Finally they all reached the mountain where they\nintended to hunt, and soon the Mountain Lion and the Bear started out to\ndrive in a herd of antelope that they had scented in the distance.\nPresently along rushed the leaders of the herd.\n\n\u201cNow, then, I\u2019ll show your cross old brother whether I can hunt or\nnot,\u201d cried the Coyote, and away he rushed right into the herd of\nantelope and deer before anyone could restrain him. Of course he made a\nCoyote of himself, and away went the deer in all directions.\nNevertheless, the brothers, who were great hunters, succeeded in\ncatching a few of them; and, just as they sat down to lunch, the\nMountain Lion returned with a big elk on his shoulders.\n\n\u201cWhere is our sweet-scented brother-in-law?\u201d he asked.\n\n\u201cNobody knows,\u201d replied they. \u201cHe rushed off after the deer and\nantelope, and that was the last of him.\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course the beast will make a Coyote of himself. But he can go till\nhe can go no longer, for all I care,\u201d added the Mountain Lion, as he sat\ndown to eat.\n\nPresently along came the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWhere\u2019s your game, my fine hunter?\u201d asked the Mountain Lion.\n\n\u201cThey all got away from me,\u201d whined the Coyote.\n\n\u201cOf course they did, you fool!\u201d sneered the Mountain Lion. \u201cThe best\nthing that you can do is to go home and see your wife. Here, take this\nmeat to sister,\u201d said he, slinging him a haunch of venison.\n\n\u201cWhere\u2019s the road?\u201d asked the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the Wolf, \u201cfollow that path right over there until you come\nto where it forks; then be sure to take the right-hand trail, for if\nyou follow the left-hand trail it will lead you away from home and into\ntrouble.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhich trail did you say?\u201d cried the Coyote.\n\n\u201c_Shom-me!_\u201d again exclaimed the Mountain Lion.\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d hastily added the Coyote; \u201cthe right-hand trail. No, the\nleft-hand trail.\u201d\n\n\u201cJust what you might expect,\u201d growled the Mountain Lion. \u201cAlready the\nfool has forgotten what you told him. Well, as for me, he can go on the\nleft-hand trail if he wants to, and the farther he goes the better.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, be sure and take the right-hand trail,\u201d called the Wolf, as the\nCoyote started.\n\n\u201cI know, I know,\u201d cried the Coyote; and away he went with his heavy\nhaunch of venison slung over his shoulder. After a while he came to the\nfork in the trail. \u201cLet me see,\u201d said he, \u201cit\u2019s the left-hand trail, it\nseems to me. No, the right-hand trail. Well, I declare, I\u2019ve forgotten!\nPerhaps it is the right-hand trail, and maybe it is the left-hand trail.\nYes, it is the left-hand trail. Now I\u2019m certain.\u201d And, picking up his\nhaunch of venison, away he trotted along the left-hand trail. Presently\nhe came to a steep cliff and began to climb it. But he had no sooner\nreached the middle than a lot of Chimney-swallows began to fly around\nhis head and pick at his eyes, and slap him on the nose with their\nwings.\n\n\u201cOh, dear! oh, dear!\u201d exclaimed the Coyote. \u201cAye! aye!\u201d and he bobbed\nhis head from side to side to dodge the Swallows, until he missed his\nfooting, and down he tumbled, heels over head,--meat, Coyote, and\nall,--until he struck a great pile of rocks below, and was dashed to\npieces.\n\nThat was the end of the Coyote; but not of my story.\n\nNow, the brothers went on hunting again. Then, one by one, they returned\nhome. As before, the Mountain Lion came in last of all. He smelt all\nabout the room. \u201cWhew!\u201d exclaimed he. \u201cIt still smells here as if twenty\nCoyotes had been around. But it seems to me that our fine brother-in-law\nisn\u2019t anywhere about.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d responded the rest, with troubled looks on their faces. \u201cNobody\nhas seen anything of him yet.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Shom--m-m!_\u201d remarked the Mountain Lion again. \u201cDidn\u2019t I tell you,\nbrothers, that he was a fool and would forget your directions? I say I\ntold you that before he started. Well, for my part, I hope the beast has\ngone so far that he will never return,\u201d and with that he ate his supper.\n\nWhen supper was over, the sister said: \u201cCome, brothers, let\u2019s go and\nhunt for my husband.\u201d\n\nAt first the Mountain Lion growled and swore a great deal; but at last\nhe consented to go. When they came to where the trails forked, there\nwere the tracks of the Coyote on the left-hand trail.\n\n\u201cThe idiot!\u201d exclaimed the Mountain Lion. \u201cI hope he has fallen off the\ncliff and broken every bone in his body!\u201d\n\nWhen at last the party reached the mountain, sure enough, there lay the\nbody of the Coyote, with not a whole bone in him except his head.\n\n\u201cGood enough for you,\u201d growled the Mountain Lion, as he picked up a\ngreat stone and, _tu-um!_ threw it down with all his strength upon the\nhead of the Coyote.\n\nThat\u2019s what happened a great while ago. And for that reason whenever a\nCoyote sees a bait of meat inside of a stone deadfall he is sure to\nstick his nose in and get his head mashed for his pains.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n [Illustration: A DANCE OF THE K\u00c2K\u00c2\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE COYOTES TRIED TO STEAL THE CHILDREN OF THE SACRED DANCE\n\n\nIn the times of the ancients, when our people lived in various places\nabout the valley of Zu\u00f1i where ruins now stand, it is said that an old\nCoyote lived in Cedar Ca\u00f1on with his family, which included a fine\nlitter of pups. It is also said that at this time there lived on the\ncrest of Thunder Mountain, back of the broad rock column or pinnacle\nwhich guards its western portion, one of the gods of the Sacred Drama\nDance (_K\u00e2k\u00e2_)[13], named K\u2019y\u00e1makwe, with his children, many in number\nand altogether like himself.\n\n [13] The _K\u00e2k\u00e2_, or Sacred Drama Dance, is represented by a\n great variety of masks and costumes worn by Zu\u00f1i dancers during\n the performance of this remarkable dramatic ceremony.\n Undoubtedly many of the traditional characters of the Sacred\n Drama thus represented are conventionalizations of the mythic\n conceptions or personifications of animal attributes. Therefore\n many of these characters partake at once of the characteristics,\n in appearance as well as in other ways, of animals and men. The\n example in point is a good illustration of this. The K\u2019y\u00e1makwe\n are supposed to have been a most wonderful and powerful tribe of\n demi-gods, inhabiting a great valley and range of mesas some\n forty miles south of Zu\u00f1i. Their powers over the atmospheric\n phenomena of nature and over all the herbivorous animals are\n supposed to have been absolute. Their attitude toward man was at\n times inimical, at times friendly or beneficent. Such a\n relationship, controlled simply by either laudatory or\n propitiatory worship, was supposed to hold spiritually, still,\n between these and other beings represented in the Sacred Drama\n and men. It is believed that through the power of breath\n communicated by these ancient gods to men, from one man to\n another man, and thus from generation to generation, an actual\n connection has been kept up between initiated members of the\n _K\u00e2k\u00e2_ drama and these original demi-god characters which it\n represents; so that when a member is properly dressed in the\n costume of any one of these characters, a ceremony (the\n description of which is too long for insertion here)\n accompanying the putting on of the mask is supposed not only to\n place him _en rapport_ spiritually with the character he\n represents, but even to possess him with the spirit of that\n character or demi-god. He is, therefore, so long as he remains\n disguised as one of these demi-gods, treated as if he were\n actually that being which he personates. One of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe is\n represented by means of a mask, round and smooth-headed, with\n little black eyes turned up at the corners so as to represent a\n segment of a diminishing spiral; the color of the face is green,\n and it is separated from the rest of the head by a line composed\n of alternate blocks of black and yellow; the crown and back of\n the head are snow-white; and the ears are pendent and conical in\n shape, being composed of husks or other paper-like material; the\n mouth is round, and furnished with a four-pointed beak of husks,\n which extends two or three inches outward and spreads at the end\n like the petals of a half-closed lily; round the neck is a\n collar of fox fur, and covering the body are flowing robes of\n sacred embroidered mantles, which (notwithstanding the gay\n ornaments and other appurtenances of the costume) have, in\n connection with the expression of the mask, a spectral effect;\n the feet are encased in brilliantly painted moccasins, of\n archaic form, and the wrists laden with shell bracelets and\n bow-guards. When the long file of these strange figures making\n up the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe Drama Dance comes in from the southward to the\n dance plazas of the pueblo, each member of it bears on his back\n freshly slain deer, antelope, rabbits, and other game animals or\n portions of them in abundance, made up in packages, highly\n decorated with tufts of evergreen, and painted toys for\n presentation to the children. In one hand are carried bows and\n arrows, and in the other a peculiar rattle or clanger made of\n the shoulder-blades of deer. The wonder expressed by the coyote\n as the story goes on, and his excessive admiration of the\n children of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe may therefore be understood.\n\nOne day the old Coyote of Cedar Ca\u00f1on went out hunting, and as he was\nprowling around among the sage-bushes below Thunder Mountain, he heard\nthe clang and rattle and the shrill cries of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe. He pricked\nup his ears, stuck his nose into the air, sniffed about and looked all\naround, and presently discovered the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe children running rapidly\nback and forth on the very edge of the mountain.\n\n\u201cDelight of my senses, what pretty creatures they are! Good for me!\u201d he\npiped, in a jovial voice. \u201cI am the finder of children. I must capture\nthe little fellows tomorrow, and bring them up as Coyotes ought to be\nbrought up. Aren\u2019t they handsome, though?\u201d\n\nAll this he said to himself, in a fit of conceit, with his nose in the\nair (presumptuous cur!), planning to steal the children of a god! He\nhunted no more that day, but ran home as fast as he could, and, arriving\nthere, he said: \u201cWife! Wife! O wife! I have discovered a number of the\nprettiest waifs one ever saw. They are children of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_, but what\nmatters that? They are there, running back and forth and clanging their\nrattles along the very edge of Thunder Mountain. I mean to steal them\ntomorrow, every one of them, and bring them here!\u201d\n\n\u201cMercy on us!\u201d exclaimed the old Coyote\u2019s wife. \u201cThere are children\nenough and to spare already. What in the world can we do with all of\nthem, you fool?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut they are pretty,\u201d said the Coyote. \u201cImmensely fine! Every Coyote in\nthe country would envy us the possession of them!\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you say they are many,\u201d continued the wife.\n\n\u201cWell, yes, a good many,\u201d said the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWell, why not divide them among our associated clans?\u201d suggested the\nold woman. \u201cYou never can capture them alone; it is rare enough that you\ncapture _anything_ alone, leave out the children of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe. Get\nyour relatives to help you, and divide the children amongst them.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, now, come to think of it, it is a good plan,\u201d said the Coyote,\nwith his nose on his neck. \u201cIf I get up this expedition I\u2019ll be a big\nchief, won\u2019t I? Hurrah! Here\u2019s for it!\u201d he shouted; and, switching his\ntail in the face of his wife, he shot out of the hole and ran away to a\nhigh rock, where, squatting down with a most important air and his nose\nlifted high, he cried out:\n\n \u201c_Au hii l\u00e2-\u00e2-\u00e2-\u00e2!\n Su Homaya-kwe!\n Su Kemaya-kwe!\n Su Ayalla-kwe!\n Su Kutsuku-kwe!_\n\n [Listen ye all!\n Coyotes of the Cedar-ca\u00f1on tribe!\n Coyotes of the Sunflower-stalk-plain tribe!\n Coyotes of the Lifted-stone-mountain tribe!\n Coyotes of the Place-of-rock-gullies tribe!]\n\nI have instructions for you this day. I have found waif children\nmany--of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe, the young. I would steal the waif-children many,\nof the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe, the young. I would steal them tomorrow, that they may\nbe adopted of us. I would have your aid in the stealing of the K\u2019y\u00e1makwe\nyoung. Listen ye all, and tomorrow gather in council. Thus much I\ninstruct ye:\n\n \u201cCoyotes of the Cedar-ca\u00f1on tribe!\n Coyotes of the Sunflower-stalk-plain tribe!\n Coyotes of the Lifted-stone-mountain tribe!\n Coyotes of the Place-of-rock-gullies tribe!\u201d\n\nIt was growing dark, and immediately from all quarters, in dark places\nunder the ca\u00f1ons and arroyos, issued answering howls and howls. You\nshould have seen that crowd of Coyotes the next morning, large and\nsmall, old and young,--all four tribes gathered together in the plain\nbelow Thunder Mountain!\n\nWhen they had all assembled, the Coyote who had made the discovery\nmounted an ant-hill, sat down, and, lifting his paw, was about to give\ndirections with the air of a chief when an ant bit him. He lost his\ndignity, but resumed it again on the top of a neighboring rock. Again he\nstuck his nose into the air and his paw out, and with ridiculous\nassumption informed the Coyotes that he was chief of them all and that\nthey would do well to pay attention to his directions. He then showed\nhimself much more skilful than you might have expected. As you know, the\ncliff of Thunder Mountain is very steep, especially that part back of\nthe two standing rocks. Well, this was the direction of the Coyote:\n\n\u201cOne of you shall place himself at the base of the mountain; another\nshall climb over him, and the first one shall grasp his tail; and\nanother over them, and his tail shall be grasped by the second, and so\non until the top is reached. Hang tight, my friends, every one of you,\nand every one fall in line. Eructate thoroughly before you do so. If you\ndo not, we may be in a pretty mess; for, supposing that any one along\nthe line should hiccough, he would lose his hold, and down we would all\nfall!\u201d\n\nSo the Coyotes all at once began to curve their necks and swell\nthemselves up and strain and wriggle and belch wind as much as\npossible. Then all fell into a line and grabbed each other\u2019s tails, and\nthus they extended themselves in a long string up the very face of\nThunder Mountain. A ridiculous little pup was at one end and a good,\nstrong, grizzled old fellow--no other than the chief of the party--at\nthe other.\n\n\u201cSouls of my ancestors! Hang tight, my friends! Hang tight! Hang tight!\u201d\nsaid he, when, suddenly, one near the top, in the agitation of the\nmoment, began to sneeze, lost his hold, and down the whole string,\nhundreds of them, fell, and were completely flattened out among the\nrocks.\n\nThe warrior of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_--he of the Long Horn, with frightful, staring\neyes, and visage blue with rage,--bow and war-club in hand, was\nhastening from the sacred lake in the west to rescue the children of the\nK\u2019y\u00e1makwe. When he arrived they had been rescued already, so, after\nstorming around a little and mauling such of the Coyotes as were not\nquite dead, he set to skin them all.\n\nAnd ever since then you will observe that the dancers of the Long Horn\nhave blue faces, and whenever they arrive in our pueblo wear collars of\ncoyote-skin about their necks. That is the way they got them. Before\nthat they had no collars. It is presumable that that is the reason why\nthey bellow so and have such hoarse voices, having previously taken\ncold, every one of them, for the want of fur collars.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COYOTE AND THE BEETLE\n\n\nIn remote times, after our ancients were settled at Middle Ant Hill, a\nlittle thing occurred which will explain a great deal.\n\nMy children, you have doubtless seen Tip-beetles. They run around on\nsmooth, hard patches of ground in spring time and early summer, kicking\ntheir heels into the air and thrusting their heads into any crack or\nhole they find.\n\nWell, in ancient times, on the pathway leading around to Fat Mountain,\nthere was one of these Beetles running about in all directions in the\nsunshine, when a Coyote came trotting along. He pricked up his ears,\nlowered his nose, arched his neck, and stuck out his paw toward the\nBeetle. \u201cHa!\u201d said he, \u201cI shall bite you!\u201d\n\nThe Beetle immediately stuck his head down close to the ground, and,\nlifting one of his antenn\u00e6 deprecatingly, exclaimed: \u201cHold on! Hold on,\nfriend! Wait a bit, for the love of mercy! I hear something very strange\ndown below here!\u201d\n\n\u201cHumph!\u201d replied the Coyote. \u201cWhat do you hear?\u201d\n\n\u201cHush! hush!\u201d cried the Beetle, with his head still to the ground.\n\u201cListen!\u201d\n\nSo the Coyote drew back and listened most attentively. By-and-by the\nBeetle lifted himself with a long sigh of relief.\n\n\u201c_Okwe!_\u201d exclaimed the Coyote. \u201cWhat was going on?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Good Soul save us!\u201d exclaimed the Beetle, with a shake of his head.\n\u201cI heard them saying down there that tomorrow they would chase away and\nthoroughly chastise everybody who defiled the public trails of this\ncountry, and they are making ready as fast as they can!\u201d\n\n\u201cSouls of my ancestors!\u201d cried the Coyote. \u201cI have been loitering along\nthis trail this very morning, and have defiled it repeatedly. I\u2019ll cut!\u201d\nAnd away he ran as fast as he could go.\n\nThe Beetle, in pure exuberance of spirits, turned somersaults and stuck\nhis head in the sand until it was quite turned.\n\nThus did the Beetle in the days of the ancients save himself from being\nbitten. Consequently the Tip-beetle has that strange habit of kicking\nhis heels into the air and sticking his head in the sand.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE COYOTE DANCED WITH THE BLACKBIRDS\n\n\nOne late autumn day in the times of the ancients, a large council of\nBlackbirds were gathered, fluttering and chattering, on the smooth,\nrocky slopes of Gorge Mountain, northwest of Zu\u00f1i. Like ourselves, these\nbirds, as you are well aware, congregate together in autumn time, when\nthe harvests are ripe, to indulge in their festivities before going into\nwinter quarters; only we do not move away, while they, on strong wings\nand swift, retreat for a time to the Land of Everlasting Summer.\n\nWell, on this particular morning they were making a great noise and\nhaving a grand dance, and this was the way of it: They would gather in\none vast flock, somewhat orderly in its disposition, on the sloping face\nof Gorge Mountain,--the older birds in front, the younger ones\nbehind,-and down the slope, chirping and fluttering, they would hop,\nhop, hop, singing:\n\n \u201c_Ketchu, Ketchu, o\u00f1til\u00e3, o\u00f1til\u00e3,\n Ketchu, Ketchu, o\u00f1til\u00e3, o\u00f1til\u00e3!\n \u00c2shokta a y\u00e1-\u00e0-laa Ke-e-tchu,\n O\u00f1til\u00e3,\n O\u00f1til\u00e3!_\u201d--\n\n Blackbirds, Blackbirds, dance away, O, dance away, O!\n Blackbirds, Blackbirds, dance away, O, dance away, O!\n Down the Mountain of the Gorges, Blackbirds,\n Dance away, O!\n Dance away, O!--\n\nand, spreading their wings, with many a flutter, flurry, and scurry,\n_keh keh,--keh keh,--keh keh,--keh keh_,--they would fly away into the\nair, swirling off in a dense, black flock, circling far upward and\nonward; then, wheeling about and darting down, they would dip themselves\nin the broad spring which flows out at the foot of the mountain, and\nreturn to their dancing place on the rocky slopes.\n\nA Coyote was out hunting (as if he could catch anything, the beast!) and\nsaw them, and was enraptured.\n\n\u201cYou beautiful creatures!\u201d he exclaimed. \u201cYou graceful dancers! Delight\nof my senses! How do you do that, anyway? Couldn\u2019t I join in your\ndance--the first part of it, at least?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, certainly; yes,\u201d said the Blackbirds. \u201cWe are quite willing,\u201d the\nmasters of the ceremony said.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cI can get on the slope of the rocks and I can\nsing the song with you; but I suppose that when you leap off into the\nair I shall have to sit there patting the rock with my paw and my tail\nand singing while you have the fun of it.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt may be,\u201d said an old Blackbird, \u201cthat we can fit you out so that you\ncan fly with us.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it possible!\u201d cried the Coyote, \u201cThen by all means do so. By the\nBlessed Immortals! Now, if I am only able to circle off into the air\nlike you fellows, I\u2019ll be the biggest Coyote in the world!\u201d\n\n\u201cI think it will be easy,\u201d resumed the old Blackbird. \u201cMy children,\u201d\nsaid he, \u201cyou are many, and many are your wing-feathers. Contribute each\none of you a feather to our friend.\u201d Thereupon the Blackbirds, each one\nof them, plucked a feather from his wing. Unfortunately they all plucked\nfeathers from the wings on the same side.\n\n\u201cAre you sure, my friend,\u201d continued the old Blackbird, \u201cthat you are\nwilling to go through the operation of having these feathers planted in\nyour skin? If so, I think we can fit you out.\u201d\n\n\u201cWilling?--why, of course I am willing.\u201d And the Coyote held up one of\nhis arms, and, sitting down, steadied himself with his tail. Then the\nBlackbirds thrust in the feathers all along the rear of his forelegs and\ndown the sides of his back, where wings ought to be. It hurt, and the\nCoyote twitched his mustache considerably; but he said nothing. When it\nwas done, he asked: \u201cAm I ready now?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the Blackbirds; \u201cwe think you\u2019ll do.\u201d\n\nSo they formed themselves again on the upper part of the slope, sang\ntheir songs, and hopped along down with many a flutter, flurry, and\nscurry,--_Keh keh, keh keh, keh keh_,--and away they flew off into the\nair.\n\nThe Coyote, somewhat startled, got out of time, but followed bravely,\nmaking heavy flops; but, as I have said before, the wings he was\nsupplied with were composed of feathers all plucked from one side, and\ntherefore he flew slanting and spirally and brought up with a whack,\nwhich nearly knocked the breath out of him, against the side of the\nmountain. He picked himself up, and shook himself, and cried out: \u201cHold!\nHold! Hold on, hold on, there!\u201d to the fast-disappearing Blackbirds.\n\u201cYou\u2019ve left me behind!\u201d\n\nWhen the birds returned they explained: \u201cYour wings are not quite thick\nenough, friend; and, besides, even a young Blackbird, when he is first\nlearning to fly, does just this sort of thing that you have been\ndoing--makes bad work of it.\u201d\n\n\u201cSit down again,\u201d said the old Blackbird. And he called out to the rest:\n\u201cGet feathers from your other sides also, and be careful to select a few\nstrong feathers from the tips of the wings, for by means of these we\ncleave the air, guide our movements, and sustain our flight.\u201d\n\nSo the Blackbirds all did as they were bidden, and after the new\nfeathers were planted, each one plucked out a tail-feather, and the most\nskilful of the Blackbirds inserted these feathers into the tip of the\nCoyote\u2019s tail. It made him wince and \u201cyip\u201d occasionally; but he stood it\nbravely and reared his head proudly, thinking all the while: \u201cWhat a\nsplendid Coyote I shall be! Did ever anyone hear of a Coyote flying?\u201d\n\nThe procession formed again. Down the slope they went, hopity-hop,\nhopity-hop, singing their song, and away they flew into the air, the\nCoyote in their midst. Far off and high they circled and circled, the\nCoyote cutting more eager pranks than any of the rest. Finally they\nreturned, dipped themselves again into the spring, and settled on the\nslopes of the rocks.\n\n\u201cThere, now,\u201d cried out the Coyote, with a flutter of his feathery\ntail, \u201cI can fly as well as the rest of you.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed, you do well!\u201d exclaimed the Blackbirds. \u201cShall we try it\nagain?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes! Oh, yes! I\u2019m a little winded,\u201d cried the Coyote, \u201cbut this is\nthe best fun I ever had.\u201d\n\nThe Blackbirds, however, were not satisfied with their companion. They\nfound him less sedate than a dancer ought to be, and, moreover, his\nirregular cuttings-up in the air were not to their taste. So the old\nones whispered to one another: \u201cThis fellow is a fool, and we must pluck\nhim when he gets into the air. We\u2019ll fly so far this time that he will\nget a little tired out and cry to us for assistance.\u201d\n\nThe procession formed, and hopity-hop, hopity-hop, down the mountain\nslope they went, and with many a flutter and flurry flew off into the\nair. The Coyote, unable to restrain himself, even took the lead. On and\non and on they flew, the Blackbirds and the Coyote, and up and up and\nup, and they circled round and round, until the Coyote found himself\nmissing a wing stroke occasionally and falling out of line; and he cried\nout: \u201cHelp! help, friends, help!\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right!\u201d cried the Blackbirds. \u201cCatch hold of his wings; hold him\nup!\u201d cried the old ones. And the Blackbirds flew at him; and every time\nthey caught hold of him (the old fool all the time thinking they were\nhelping) they plucked out a feather, until at last the feathers had\nbecome so thin that he began to fall, and he fell and fell and\nfell,--flop, flop, flop, he went through the air,--the few feathers left\nin his forelegs and sides and the tip of his tail just saving him from\nbeing utterly crushed as he fell with a thud to the ground. He lost his\nsenses completely, and lay there as if dead for a long time. When he\nawoke, he shook his head sadly, and, with a crestfallen countenance and\ntail dragging between his legs, betook himself to his home over the\nmountains.\n\nThe agony of that fall had been so great and the heat of his exertions\nso excessive, that the feathers left in his forelegs and tail-tip were\nall shrivelled up into little ugly black fringes of hair. His\ndescendants were many.\n\nTherefore you will often meet coyotes to this day who have little black\nfringes along the rear of their forelegs, and the tips of their tails\nare often black. Thus it was in the days of the ancients.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE TURTLE OUT HUNTING DUPED THE COYOTE\n\n\nIn the times of the ancients, long, long ago, near the Highflowing River\non the Zu\u00f1i Mountains, there lived an old Turtle. He went out hunting,\none day, and by means of his ingenuity killed a large, fine deer. When\nhe had thrown the deer to the ground, he had no means of skinning it. He\nsat down and reflected, scratching the lid of his eye with the nail of\nhis hind foot. He concluded he would have to go hunting for a\nflint-knife; therefore he set forth. He came after a while to a place\nwhere old buildings had stood. Then he began to hum an old magic song,\nsuch as, it is said, the ancients sung when they hunted for the flint of\nwhich to make knives. He sang in this way:\n\n \u201c_Apatsinan tse wash,\n Apatsinan tse wash,\n Tsepa! Tsepa!_\u201d\n\nwhich may be translated, not perhaps correctly, but well enough:\n\n Fire-striking flint-stone, oh, make yourself known!\n Fire-striking flint-stone, oh, make yourself known!\n Magically! Magically!\n\nAs he was thus crawling about and singing, a Coyote running through the\nwoods overheard him. He exclaimed: \u201cUh! I wonder who is singing and what\nhe is saying. Ah, he is hunting for a flint-knife, is he?--evidently\nsomebody who has killed a deer!\u201d He turned back, and ran over to where\nthe old Turtle was. As he neared him, he cried out: \u201cHalloo, friend!\nDidn\u2019t I hear you singing?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d was the reply of the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWhat were you singing?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing in particular.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, you were, too. What were you saying?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing in particular, I tell you; at least, nothing that concerns\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, you were saying something, and this is what you said.\u201d And so the\nCoyote, who could not sing the song, deliberately repeated the words he\nhad heard.\n\n\u201cWell, suppose I did say so; what of that?\u201d said the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWhy, you were hunting for a flint-knife; that is why you said what you\ndid,\u201d replied the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWell, what of that?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat did you want the flint-knife for?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing in particular,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\n\u201cYes, you did; you wanted it for something. What was it?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing in particular, I say,\u201d replied the Turtle. \u201cAt least, nothing\nthat concerns you.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, you did want it for something,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cand I know what\nit was, too.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, what?\u201d asked the Turtle, who was waxing rather angry.\n\n\u201cYou wanted it to skin a deer with; that\u2019s what you wanted it for. Where\nis the deer now, come? You have killed a deer and I know it. Tell,\nwhere is it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, it lies over yonder,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWhere? Come, let us go; I\u2019ll help you skin it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can get along very well without you,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWhat if I do help you a little? I am very hungry this morning, and\nwould like to lap up the blood.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, then, come along, torment!\u201d replied the Turtle. So, finding a\nknife, they proceeded to where the deer was lying.\n\n\u201cLet me hold him for you,\u201d cried the Coyote. Whereupon he jumped over\nthe deer, spread out its hind legs, and placed a paw on each of them,\nholding the body open; and thus they began to skin the deer. When they\nhad finished this work, the Coyote turned to the Turtle and asked: \u201cHow\nmuch of him are you going to give me?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe usual parts that fall to anyone who comes along when the hunter is\nskinning a deer,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWhat parts?\u201d eagerly asked the Coyote.\n\n\u201cStomach and liver,\u201d replied the Turtle, briefly.\n\n\u201cI won\u2019t take that,\u201d whined the Coyote. \u201cI want you to give me half of\nthe deer.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll do no such thing,\u201d replied the Turtle. \u201cI killed the deer; you\nonly helped to skin him, and you ought to be satisfied with my\nliberality in giving you the stomach and liver alone. I\u2019ll throw in a\nlittle fat, to be sure, and some of the intestines; but I\u2019ll give you no\nmore.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, you will, too,\u201d snarled the Coyote, showing his teeth.\n\n\u201cOh, will I?\u201d replied the Turtle, deliberately, hauling in one or two of\nhis flippers.\n\n\u201cYes, you will; or I\u2019ll simply murder you, that\u2019s all.\u201d\n\nThe Turtle immediately pulled his feet, head, and tail in, and cried: \u201cI\ntell you, I\u2019ll give you nothing but the stomach and liver and some of\nthe intestines of this deer!\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, then, I will forthwith kill you!\u201d snapped the Coyote, and he made\na grab for the Turtle. _Kopo!_ sounded his teeth as they struck on the\nhard shell of the Turtle; and, bite as he would, the Turtle simply\nslipped out of his mouth every time he grabbed him. He rolled the Turtle\nover and over to find a good place for biting, and held him between his\npaws as if he were a bone, and gnawed at him; but, do his best, _kopo,\nkopo!_ his teeth kept slipping off the Turtle\u2019s hard shell. At last he\nexclaimed, rather hotly: \u201cThere\u2019s more than one way of killing a beast\nlike you!\u201d So he set the Turtle up on end, and, catching up a quantity\nof sand, stuffed it into the hole where the Turtle\u2019s head had\ndisappeared and tapped it well down with a stick until he had completely\nfilled the crevice. \u201cThere, now,\u201d he exclaimed, with a snicker of\ndelight. \u201cI think I have fixed you now, old Hardshell, and served you\nright, too, you old stingy-box!\u201d--whereupon he whisked away to the meat.\n\nThe Turtle considered it best to die, as it were; but he listened\nintently to what was going on. The Coyote cut up the deer and made a\npackage of him in his own skin. Then he washed the stomach in a\nneighboring brook and filled it with choppings of the liver and kidneys,\nand fat stripped from the intestines, and clots of blood, dashing in a\nfew sprigs of herbs here and there. Then, according to the custom of\nhunters in all times, he dug an oven in the ground and buried the\nstomach, in order to make a baked blood-pudding of it while he was\nsummoning his family and friends to help him take the meat home.\n\nThe Turtle clawed a little of the sand away from his neck and peered out\njust a trifle. He heard the Coyote grunting as he tried to lift the meat\nin order to hang it on a branch of a neighboring pine tree. He was just\nexclaiming: \u201cWhat a lucky fellow I am to come on that lame, helpless old\nwretch and get all this meat from him without the trouble of hunting for\nit, to be sure! Ah, my dear children, my fine old wife, what a feast we\nwill have this day!\u201d--for you know the Coyote had a large family over\nthe way,--he was just exclaiming this, I say, when the Turtle cried out,\nfaintly: \u201c_Natipa!_\u201d\n\n\u201cYou hard-coated old scoundrel! You ugly, crooked-legged beast! You\nstingy-box!\u201d snarled the Coyote. \u201cSo you are alive, are you?\u201d Dropping\nthe meat, he leaped back to where the Turtle was lying, his head hauled\nin again, and, jamming every crevice full of sand, made it hard and\nfirm. Then, hitting the Turtle a clip with the tip of his nose, he sent\nhim rolling over and over like a flat, round stone down the slope.\n\n\u201cThis is fine treatment to receive from the hands of such a sneaking cur\nas that,\u201d thought the Turtle. \u201cI think I will keep quiet this time and\nlet him do as he pleases. But through my ingenuity I killed the deer,\nand it may be that through ingenuity I can keep the deer.\u201d\n\nSo the Turtle kept perfectly dead, to all appearances, and the Coyote,\nleaving the meat hanging on a low branch of a tree and building a fire\nover the oven he had excavated, whisked away with his tail in the air to\nhis house just the other side of the mountain.\n\nWhen he arrived there he cried out: \u201cWife, wife! Children, children!\nCome, quick! Great news! Killed an enormous deer today. I have made a\nblood-pudding in his stomach and buried it. Let us go and have a feast;\nthen you must help me bring the meat home.\u201d\n\nThose Coyotes were perfectly wild. The cubs, half-grown, with their\ntails more like sticks than brushes, trembled from the ends of their\ntoe-nails to the tips of their stick-like tails; and they all set\noff--the old ones ahead, the young ones following single file--as fast\nas they could toward the place where the blood-pudding was buried.\n\nNow, as soon as the old Turtle was satisfied that the Coyote had left,\nhe dug the sand out of his collar with his tough claws, and, proceeding\nto the place where the meat hung, first hauled it up, piece by piece, to\nthe very top of the tree; for Turtles have claws, you know, and can\nclimb, especially if the trunk of the tree leans over, as that one did.\nHaving hauled the meat to the very topmost branches of the tree, and\ntied it there securely, he descended and went over to where the\nblood-pudding was buried. He raked the embers away from it and pulled it\nout; then he dragged it off to a neighboring ant-hill where the red\nfire-ants were congregated in great numbers. Immediately they began to\nrush out, smelling the cooked meat, and the Turtle, untying the end of\nthe stomach, chucked as many of the ants as he could into it. Then he\ndragged the pudding back to the fire and replaced it in the oven, taking\ncare that the coals should not get near it.\n\nHe had barely climbed the tree again and nestled himself on his bundle\nof meat, when along came those eager Coyotes. Everything stuck up all\nover them with anxiety for the feast--their hair, the tips of their\nears, and the points of their tails; and as they neared the place and\nsmelt the blood and the cooked meat, they began to sing and dance as\nthey came along, and this was what they sang:\n\n \u201c_Na-ti tsa, na-ti tsa!\n Tui-ya si-si na-ti tsa!\n Tui-ya si-si na-ti tsa!\n Tui-ya si-si! Tui-ya si-si!_\u201d\n\nWe will have to translate this--which is so old that who can remember\nexactly what it means?--thus:\n\n Meat of the deer, meat of the deer!\n Luscious fruit-like meat of the deer!\n Luscious fruit-like meat of the deer!\n Luscious fruit-like! Luscious fruit-like!\n\nNo sooner had they neared the spot where they smelt the meat than,\nwithout looking around at all, they made a bound for it. But the old\nCoyote grabbed the hindmost of the young ones by the ear until he\nyelped, shook him, and called out to all the rest: \u201cLook you here! Eat\nin a decent manner or you will burn your chops off! I stuffed the\npudding full of grease, and the moment you puncture it, the grease,\nbeing hot, will fly out and burn you. Be careful and dignified,\nchildren. There is plenty of time, and you shall be satisfied. Don\u2019t\ngorge at the first helping!\u201d\n\nBut the moment the little Coyotes were freed, they made a grand bounce\nfor the tempting stomach, tearing it open, and grabbing huge mouthfuls.\nIt may be surmised that the fire-ants were not comfortable. They ran all\nover the lips and cheeks of the voracious little gormands and bit them\nuntil they cried out, shaking their heads and rubbing them in the sand:\n\u201c_Atu-tu-tu-tu-tu-tu!_\u201d\n\n\u201cThere, now, didn\u2019t I tell you, little fools, to be careful? It was the\ngrease that burnt you. Now I hope you know enough to eat a little more\nmoderately. There\u2019s plenty of time to satisfy yourselves, I say,\u201d cried\nthe old Coyote, sitting down on his haunches.\n\nThen the little cubs and the old woman attacked the delicacy again.\n\u201c_Atu-tu-tu-tu-tu-tu-tu!_\u201d they exclaimed, shaking their heads and\nflapping their ears; and presently they all went away and sat down,\nobserving this wonderful hot pudding.[14]\n\n [14] It may be well to explain here that there is no more\n intensely painful or fiery bite known than the bite of the\n fire-ant or red ant of the Southwest and the tropics, named, in\n Zu\u00f1i, _halo_. Large pimples and blisters are raised by the bite,\n which is so venomous, moreover, that for the time being it\n poisons the blood and fills every vein of the body with burning\n sensations.\n\nThen the Coyote looked around and observed that the meat was gone, and,\nfollowing the grease and blood spots up the tree with his eye, saw in\nthe top the pack of meat with the Turtle calmly reclining upon it and\nresting, his head stretched far out on his hand. The Turtle lifted his\nhead and exclaimed: \u201c_Pe-sa-las-ta-i-i-i-i!_\u201d\n\n\u201cYou tough-hided old beast!\u201d yelled the Coyote, in an ecstasy of rage\nand disappointment. \u201cThrow down some of that meat, now, will you? I\nkilled that deer; you only helped me skin him; and here you have stolen\nall the meat. Wife! Children! Didn\u2019t I kill the deer?\u201d he cried, turning\nto the rest.\n\n\u201cCertainly you did, and he\u2019s a sneaking old wretch to steal it from\nyou!\u201d they exclaimed in chorus, looking longingly at the pack of meat in\nthe top of the tree.\n\n\u201cWho said I stole the meat from you?\u201d cried out the Turtle. \u201cI only\nhauled it up here to keep it from being stolen, you villain! Scatter\nyourselves out to catch some of it. I will throw as fine a pair of ribs\ndown to you as ever you saw. There, now, spread yourselves out and get\nclose together. Ready?\u201d he called, as the Coyotes lay down on their\nbacks side by side and stretched their paws as high as they could\neagerly and tremblingly toward the meat.\n\n\u201cYes, yes!\u201d cried the Coyotes, in one voice. \u201cWe are all ready! Now,\nthen!\u201d\n\nThe old Turtle took up the pair of ribs, and, catching them in his beak,\ncrawled out to the end of the branch immediately over the Coyotes, and,\ngiving them a good fling, dropped them as hard as he could. Over and\nover they fell, and then came down like a pair of stones across the\nbodies of the Coyotes, crushing the wind out of them, so that they had\nno breath left with which to cry out, and most of them were instantly\nkilled. But the two little cubs at either side escaped with only a hurt\nor two, and, after yelling fearfully, one of them took his tail between\nhis legs and ran away. The other one, still very hungry, ran off with\nhis tail lowered and his nose to the ground, sidewise, until he had got\nto a safe distance, and then he sat down and looked up. Presently he\nthought he would return and eat some of the meat from the ribs.\n\n\u201cWait!\u201d cried the old Turtle, \u201cdon\u2019t go near that meat; leave it alone\nfor your parents and brothers and sisters. Really, I am so old and stiff\nthat it took me a long time to get out to the end of that limb, and I am\nafraid they went to sleep while I was getting there, for see how still\nthey lie.\u201d\n\n\u201cBy my ancestors!\u201d exclaimed the Coyote, looking at them; \u201cthat is so.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy don\u2019t you come up here and have a feast with me,\u201d said the Turtle,\n\u201cand leave that meat alone for your brothers and sisters and your old\nones?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I get up there?\u201d whined the Coyote, crawling nearer to the\ntree.\n\n\u201cSimply reach up until you get your paw over one of the branches, and\nthen haul yourself up,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\nThe little Coyote stretched and jumped, and, though he sometimes\nsucceeded in getting his paw over the branch, he fell back, _flop!_\nevery time. And then he would yelp and sing out as though every bone in\nhis body was broken.\n\n\u201cNever mind! never mind!\u201d cried the Turtle. \u201cI\u2019ll come down and help\nyou.\u201d So he crawled down the tree, and, reaching over, grabbed the\nlittle Coyote by the top-knot, and by much struggling he was able to\nclimb up. When they got to the top of the tree the Turtle said: \u201cThere,\nnow, help yourself.\u201d\n\nThe little Coyote fell to and filled himself so full that he was as\nround as a plum and elastic as a cranberry. Then he looked about and\nlicked his chops and tried to breathe, but couldn\u2019t more than half, and\nsaid: \u201cOh, my! if I don\u2019t get some water I\u2019ll choke!\u201d\n\n\u201cMy friend,\u201d said the Turtle, \u201cdo you see that drop of water gleaming in\nthe sun at the end of that branch of this pine tree?\u201d (It was really\npitch.) \u201cNow, I have lived in the tops of trees so much that I know\nwhere to go. Trees have springs. Look at that.\u201d\n\nThe Coyote looked and was convinced.\n\n\u201cWalk out, now, to the end of the branch, or until you come to one of\nthose drops of water, then take it in your mouth and suck, and all the\nwater you want will flow out.\u201d\n\nThe little Coyote started. He trembled and was unsteady on his legs, but\nmanaged to get half way. \u201cIs it here?\u201d he called, turning round and\nlooking back.\n\n\u201cNo, a little farther,\u201d said the Turtle.\n\nSo he cautiously stepped a little farther. The branch was swaying\ndreadfully. He turned his head, and just as he was saying, \u201cIs it here?\u201d\nhe lost his balance and fell plump to the ground, striking so hard on\nthe tough earth that he was instantly killed.\n\n\u201cThere, you wretched beast!\u201d said the old Turtle with a sigh of relief\nand satisfaction. \u201cIngenuity enabled me to kill a deer. Ingenuity\nenabled me to retain the deer.\u201d\n\nIt must not be forgotten that one of the little Coyotes ran away. He had\nnumerous descendants, and ever since that time they have been\ncharacterized by pimples all over their faces where the mustaches grow\nout, and little blotches inside of their lips, such as you see inside\nthe lips of dogs.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COYOTE AND THE LOCUST\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients, there lived south of Zu\u00f1i, beyond the\nheadland of rocks, at a place called Suski-ashokton (\u201cRock Hollow of the\nCoyotes\u201d), an old Coyote. And this side of the headland of rocks, in the\nbank of a steep arroyo, lived an old Locust, near where stood a pi\u00f1on\ntree, crooked and so bereft of needles that it was sunny.\n\nOne day the Coyote went out hunting, leaving his large family of\nchildren and his old wife at home. It was a fine day and the sun was\nshining brightly, and the old Locust crawled out of his home in the loam\nof the arroyo and ascended to one of the bare branches of the pi\u00f1on\ntree, where, hooking his feet firmly into the bark, he began to sing and\nplay his flute. The Coyote in his wanderings came along just as he began\nto sing these words:\n\n \u201c_Tchumali, tchumali, shohkoya,\n Tchumali, tchumali, shohkoya!\n Yaamii heeshoo taatani tchupatchinte,\n Shohkoya,\n Shohkoya!_\u201d\n\n Locust, locust, playing a flute,\n Locust, locust, playing a flute!\n Away up above on the pine-tree bough, closely clinging,\n Playing a flute,\n Playing a flute!\n\n\u201cDelight of my senses!\u201d called out the Coyote, squatting down on his\nhaunches, and looking up, with his ears pricked and his mouth grinning;\n\u201cDelight of my senses, how finely you play your flute!\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think so?\u201d said the Locust, continuing his song.\n\n\u201cGoodness, yes!\u201d cried the Coyote, shifting nearer. \u201cWhat a song it is!\nPray, teach it to me, so that I can take it home and dance my children\nto it. I have a large family at home.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the Locust. \u201cListen, then.\u201d And he sang his song\nagain:\n\n \u201c_Tchumali, tchumali, shohkoya,\n Tchumali, tchumali, shohkoya!\n Yaamii heeshoo taatani tchupatchinte,\n Shohkoya,\n Shohkoya!_\u201d\n\n\u201cDelightful!\u201d cried the Coyote. \u201cNow, shall I try?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, try.\u201d\n\nThen in a very hoarse voice the Coyote half growled and half sang\n(making a mistake here and there, to be sure) what the Locust had sung,\nthough there was very little music in his repetition of the performance.\n\n \u201c_Tchu u-mali, tchumali--shohshoh koya,\n Tchu tchu mali, tchumali shohkoya,\n Yaa mami he he shoo ta ta tante tchup patchin te,\n Shohkoya,\n Shohkoya!_\u201d\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d laughed he, as he finished; \u201cI have got it, haven\u2019t I?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, yes,\u201d said the Locust, \u201cfairly well.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, then, let us sing it over together.\u201d\n\nAnd while the Locust piped shrilly the Coyote sang gruffly, though much\nbetter than at first, the song.\n\n\u201cThere, now,\u201d exclaimed he, with a whisk of his tail; \u201cdidn\u2019t I tell\nyou?\u201d and without waiting to say another word he whisked away toward his\nhome beyond the headland of rocks. As he was running along the plain he\nkept repeating the song to himself, so that he would not forget it,\ncasting his eyes into the air, after the manner of men in trying to\nremember or to say particularly fine things, so that he did not notice\nan old Gopher peering at him somewhat ahead on the trail; and the old\nGopher laid a trap for him in his hole.\n\nThe Coyote came trotting along, singing: \u201c_Shohkoya, shohkoya_,\u201d when\nsuddenly he tumbled heels over head into the Gopher\u2019s hole. He sneezed,\nbegan to cough, and to rub the sand out of his eyes; and then jumping\nout, cursed the Gopher heartily, and tried to recall his song, but found\nthat he had utterly forgotten it, so startled had he been.\n\n\u201cThe lubber-cheeked old Gopher! I wish the pests were all in the Land of\nDemons!\u201d cried he. \u201cThey dig their holes, and nobody can go anywhere in\nsafety. And now I have forgotten my song. Well, I will run back and get\nthe old Locust to sing it over again. If he can sit there singing to\nhimself, why can\u2019t he sing it to me? No doubt in the world he is still\nout there on that pi\u00f1on branch singing away.\u201d Saying which, he ran back\nas fast as he could. When he arrived at the pi\u00f1on tree, sure enough,\nthere was the old Locust still sitting and singing.\n\n\u201cNow, how lucky this is, my friend!\u201d cried the Coyote, long before he\nhad reached the place. \u201cThe lubber-cheeked, fat-sided old Gopher dug a\nhole right in my path; and I went along singing your delightful song and\nwas so busy with it that I fell headlong into the trap he had set for\nme, and I was so startled that, on my word, I forgot all about the song,\nand I have come back to ask you to sing it for me again.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the Locust. \u201cBe more careful this time.\u201d So he sang\nthe song over.\n\n\u201cGood! Surely I\u2019ll not forget it this time,\u201d cried the Coyote; so he\nwhisked about, and away he sped toward his home beyond the headland of\nrocks. \u201cGoodness!\u201d said he to himself, as he went along; \u201cwhat a fine\nthing this will be for my children! How they will be quieted by it when\nI dance them as I sing it! Let\u2019s see how it runs. Oh, yes!\n\n \u201c_Tchumali, tchumali, shohkoya,\n Tchumali, tchumali, shohko_--\u201d\n\n_Thli-i-i-i-i-p, piu-piu, piu-piu!_ fluttered a flock of Pigeons out of\nthe bushes at his very feet, with such a whizzing and whistling that the\nCoyote nearly tumbled over with fright, and, recovering himself, cursed\nthe Doves heartily, calling them \u201cgray-backed, useless sage-vermin\u201d;\nand, between his fright and his anger, was so much shaken up that he\nagain forgot his song.\n\nNow, the Locust wisely concluded that this would be the case, and as he\ndid not like the Coyote very well, having been told that sometimes\nmembers of his tribe were by no means friendly to Locusts and other\ninsects, he concluded to play him a trick and teach him a lesson in the\nminding of his own affairs. So, catching tight hold of the bark, he\nswelled himself up and strained until his back split open; then he\nskinned himself out of his old skin, and, crawling down the tree, found\na suitable quartz stone, which, being light-colored and clear, would not\nmake his skin look unlike himself. He took the stone up the tree and\ncarefully placed it in the empty skin. Then he cemented the back\ntogether with a little pitch and left his exact counterfeit sticking to\nthe bark, after which he flew away to a neighboring tree.\n\nNo sooner had the Coyote recovered his equanimity to some extent than,\ndiscovering the loss of his song and again exclaiming \u201cNo doubt he is\nstill there piping away; I\u2019ll go and get him to sing it over,\u201d--he ran\nback as fast as he could.\n\n\u201cAh wha!\u201d he exclaimed, as he neared the tree. \u201cI am quite fatigued with\nall this extra running about. But, no matter; I see you are still there,\nmy friend. A lot of miserable, gray-backed Ground-pigeons flew up right\nfrom under me as I was going along singing my song, and they startled me\nso that I forgot it; but I tell you, I cursed them heartily! Now, my\nfriend, will you not be good enough to sing once more for me?\u201d\n\nHe paused for a reply. None came.\n\n\u201cWhy, what\u2019s the matter? Don\u2019t you hear me?\u201d yelled the Coyote, running\nnearer, looking closely, and scrutinizing the Locust. \u201cI say, I have\nlost my song, and want you to sing for me again. Will you, or will you\nnot?\u201d Then he paused.\n\n\u201cLook here, are you going to sing for me or not?\u201d continued the Coyote,\ngetting angry.\n\nNo reply.\n\nThe Coyote stretched out his nose, wrinkled up his lips, and snarled:\n\u201cLook here, do you see my teeth? Well, I\u2019ll ask you just four times more\nto sing for me, and if you don\u2019t sing then, I\u2019ll snap you up in a hurry,\nI tell you. Will--you--sing--for me? Once. Will you sing--for me? Twice.\nTwo more times! Look out! Will you sing for me? Are you a fool? Do you\nsee my teeth? Only once more! Will--you--sing--for me?\u201d\n\nNo reply.\n\n\u201cWell, you are a fool!\u201d yelled the Coyote, unable to restrain himself\nlonger, and making a quick jump, he snapped the Locust skin off of the\nbough, and bit it so hard that it crushed and broke the teeth in the\nmiddle of his jaw, driving some of them so far down in his gums that you\ncould hardly see them, and crowding the others out so that they were\nregular tusks. The Coyote dropped the stone, rolled in the sand, and\nhowled and snarled and wriggled with pain. Then he got up and shook his\nhead, and ran away with his tail between his legs. So excessive was his\npain that at the first brook he came to he stooped down to lap up water\nin order to alleviate it, and he there beheld what you and I see in the\nmouths of every Coyote we ever catch,--that the teeth back of the\ncanines are all driven down, so that you can see only the points of\nthem, and look very much broken up.\n\nIn the days of the ancients the Coyote minded not his own business and\nrestrained not his anger. So he bit a Locust that was only the skin of\none with a stone inside. And all his descendants have inherited his\nbroken teeth. And so also to this day, when Locusts venture out on a\nsunny morning to sing a song, it is not infrequently their custom to\nprotect themselves from the consequences of attracting too much\nattention by skinning themselves and leaving their counterparts on the\ntrees.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COYOTE AND THE RAVENS WHO RACED THEIR EYES\n\n\nLong, long ago, in the days of the ancients, there lived in H\u00f3maiakwin,\nor the Ca\u00f1on of the Cedars, a Coyote,--doubtless the same one I have\ntold you of as having made friends with the Woodpounder bird. As you\nknow, this ca\u00f1on in which he lived is below the high eastern cliff of\nFace Mountain.\n\nThis Coyote was out walking one day. On leaving his house he had said\nthat he was going hunting; but,--miserable fellow!--who ever knew a\nCoyote to catch anything, unless it were a prairie-dog or a wood-rat or\na locust or something of the kind? So you may depend upon it he was out\nwalking; that is, wandering around to see what he could see.\n\nHe crossed over the valley northward, with his tail dragging along in an\nindifferent sort of a way, until he came to the place on Thunder\nMountain called Shoton-pia (\u201cWhere the Shell Breastplate Hangs\u201d). He\nclimbed up the foot-hills, and along the terraces at the base of the\ncliff, and thus happened to get toward the southeastern corner of the\nmountain. There is a little column of rock with a round top to it\nstanding there, as you know, to this day.\n\nNow, on the top of this standing rock sat two old Ravens, racing their\neyes. One of them would settle himself down on the rock and point with\nhis beak straight off across the valley to some pinnacle in the cliffs\nof the opposite mesa. Then he would say to his companion, without\nturning his head at all: \u201cYou see that rock yonder? Well, ahem! Standing\nrock yonder, round you, go ye my eyes and come back.\u201d Then he would\nlower his head, stiffen his neck, squeeze his eyelids, and \u201c_Pop!_\u201d he\nwould say as his eyes flew out of their sockets, and sailed away toward\nthe rock like two streaks of lightning, reaching which they would go\nround it, and come back toward the Raven; and as they were coming back,\nhe would swell up his throat and say \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u_,\u201d--whereupon his\neyes would slide with a _k\u2019othlo!_ into their sockets again. Then he\nwould turn toward his companion, and swelling up his throat still more,\nand ducking his head just as if he were trying to vomit his own neck, he\nwould laugh inordinately; and the other would laugh with him, bristling\nup all the feathers on his body.\n\nThen the other one would settle himself, and say: \u201cAh, I\u2019ll better you!\nYou see that rock away yonder?\u201d Then he would begin to squeeze his\neyelids, and _thlut!_ his eyes would fly out of their sockets and away\nacross the mesa and round the rock he had named; and as they flew back,\nhe would lower himself, and say \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u_,\u201d when _k\u2019othlo!_ the\neyes would slide into their sockets again. Then, as much amused as ever,\nthe Ravens would laugh at one another again.\n\nNow, the Coyote heard the Ravens humming their eyes back into their\nsockets; and the sound they made, as well as the way they laughed so\nheartily, exceedingly pleased him, so that he stuck his tail up very\nstraight and laughed merely from seeing them laugh. Presently he could\ncontain himself no longer. \u201cFriends,\u201d he cried, in a shrieky little\nvoice, \u201cI say, friends, how do you do, and what are you doing?\u201d\n\nThe Ravens looked down, and when they saw the Coyote they laughed and\npunched one another with their wings and cried out to him: \u201cBless you!\nGlad to see you come!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it you are doing?\u201d asked he. \u201cBy the daylight of the gods, it\nis funny, whatever it is!\u201d And he whisked his tail and laughed, as he\nsaid this, drawing nearer to the Ravens.\n\n\u201cWhy, we are racing our eyes,\u201d said the older of the two Ravens. \u201cDidn\u2019t\nyou ever see anyone race his eyes before?\u201d\n\n\u201cGood demons, no!\u201d exclaimed the Coyote. \u201cRace your eyes! How in the\nworld do you race your eyes?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, this way,\u201d said one of the Ravens. And he settled himself down.\n\u201cDo you see that tall rock yonder? Ahem! Well, tall rock, yonder,--ye my\neyes go round it and return to me!\u201d _K\u2019othlo! k\u2019othlo!_ the eyes slipped\nout of their sockets, and the Raven, holding his head perfectly still,\nwaited, with his upper lids hanging wrinkled on his lower, for the\nreturn of the eyes; and as they neared him, he crouched down, swelled up\nhis neck, and exclaimed \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u_.\u201d _Tsoko!_ the eyes flew\ninto their sockets again. Then the Raven turned around and showed his\ntwo black bright eyes as good as ever. \u201cThere, now! what did I tell\nyou?\u201d\n\n\u201cBy the moon!\u201d squeaked the Coyote, and came up nearer still. \u201cHow in\nthe world do you do that? It is one of the most wonderful and funny\nthings I ever saw!\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, here, come up close to me,\u201d said the Raven, \u201cand I will show you\nhow it is done.\u201d Then the other Raven settled himself down; and _pop!_\nwent his eyes out of their sockets, round a rock still farther away. And\nas they returned, he exclaimed \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u_,\u201d when _tsoko!_ in\nagain they came. And he turned around laughing at the Coyote. \u201cThere,\nnow!\u201d said he, \u201cdidn\u2019t I tell you?\u201d\n\n\u201cBy the daylight of the gods! I wish I could do that,\u201d said the Coyote.\n\u201cSuppose I try my eyes?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, yes, if you like, to be sure!\u201d said the Ravens. \u201cWell, now, do you\nwant to try?\u201d\n\n\u201cHumph! I should say I did,\u201d replied the Coyote.\n\n\u201cWell, then, settle down right here on this rock,\u201d said the Ravens,\nmaking way for him, \u201cand hold your head out toward that rock and say:\n\u2018Yonder rock, these my eyes go round it and return to me.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cI know! I know! I know!\u201d yelled the Coyote. And he settled himself\ndown, and squeezed and groaned to force his eyes out of his sockets, but\nthey would not go. \u201cGoodness!\u201d said the Coyote, \u201chow can I get my eyes\nto go out of their sockets?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, don\u2019t you know how?\u201d said the Ravens. \u201cWell, just keep still, and\nwe\u2019ll help you; we\u2019ll take them out for you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right! all right!\u201d cried the Coyote, unable to repress his\nimpatience. \u201cQuick! quick! here I am, all ready!\u201d And crouching down, he\nlaid his tail straight out, swelled up his neck, and strained with every\nmuscle to force his eyes out of his head. The Ravens picked them out\nwith a dexterous twist of their beaks in no time, and sent them flying\noff over the valley. The Coyote yelped a little when they came out, but\nstood his ground manfully, and cringed down his neck and waited for his\neyes to come back.\n\n\u201cLet the fool of a beast go without his eyes,\u201d said the Ravens. \u201cHe was\nso very anxious to get rid of them, and do something he had no business\nwith; let him go without them!\u201d Whereupon they flew off across the\nvalley, and caught up his eyes and ate them, and flew on, laughing at\nthe predicament in which they had left the Coyote.\n\nNow, thus the Coyote sat there the proper length of time; then he opened\nhis mouth, and said \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u!_\u201d But he waited in vain for his\neyes to come back. And \u201c_Whu-u-u-u-u-u-u-u-u!_\u201d he said again. No use.\n\u201cMercy!\u201d exclaimed he, \u201cwhat can have become of my eyes? Why don\u2019t they\ncome back?\u201d After he had waited and \u201c_whu-u-u-u-u-d_\u201d until he was\ntired, he concluded that his eyes had got lost, and laid his head on his\nbreast, wofully thinking of his misfortune. \u201cHow in the world shall I\nhunt up my eyes?\u201d he groaned, as he lifted himself cautiously (for it\nmust be remembered that he stood on a narrow rock), and tried to look\nall around; but he couldn\u2019t see. Then he began to feel with his paws,\none after another, to find the way down; and he slipped and fell, so\nthat nearly all the breath was knocked out of his body. When he had\nrecovered, he picked himself up, and felt and felt along, slowly\ndescending, until he got into the valley.\n\nNow, it happened as he felt his way along with his toes that he came to\na wet place in the valley, not far below where the spring of Shuntakaiya\nflows out from the cliffs above. In feeling his way, his foot happened\nto strike a yellow cranberry, ripe and soft, but very cold, of course.\n\u201cHa!\u201d said he, \u201clucky fellow, I! Here is one of my eyes.\u201d So he picked\nit up and clapped it into one of his empty sockets; then he peered up to\nthe sky, and the light struck through it. \u201cDidn\u2019t I tell you so, old\nfellow? It is one of your eyes, by the souls of your ancestors!\u201d Then he\nfelt around until he found another cranberry. \u201cHa!\u201d said he, \u201cand this\nproves it! Here is the other!\u201d And he clapped that into the other empty\nsocket. He didn\u2019t seem to see quite as well as he had seen before, but\nstill the cranberries answered the purpose of eyes exceedingly well, and\nthe poor wretch of a Coyote never knew the difference; only it was\nobserved when he returned to his companions in the Ca\u00f1on of the Cedars\nthat he had yellow eyes instead of black ones, which everybody knows\nCoyotes and all other creatures had at first.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients, and hence to this day coyotes\nhave yellow eyes, and are not always quick to see things.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE PRAIRIE-DOGS AND THEIR PRIEST, THE BURROWING-OWL\n\n\nOnce, long, long ago, there stood in Prairie-dog Land a large\nPrairie-dog village. Prairie-dog Land is south of Zu\u00f1i, beyond Grease\nMountain; and in the middle of that country, which is one of our smaller\nmeadows, stands a mountain, which is a little mound. All round about the\nbase of this mountain were the sky-holes and door-mounds and pathways of\nthe grandfathers of the Prairie-dogs. In the very top of the mount was\nthe house of an old Burrowing-owl and his wife.\n\nOne summer it rained and it rained and it rained, so that the fine\nfields of _mit\u00e4liko_ (wild portulaca) were kept constantly fresh, and\nthe Prairie-dogs had unfailing supplies of this, their favorite food.\nThey became fat and happy, and gloried in the rain-storms that had\nproduced such an abundant harvest for them. But still it kept raining,\nuntil by-and-by, when they descended to their fields of _mit\u00e4liko_, they\nfound their feet were wet, which they did not like any more than\nPrairie-dogs like it today.\n\nNow, you know that in some parts of the meadow of Prairie-dog Land are\nlittle hollows, in which the water collects when it rains hard. Just in\nthese places were the fields of _mit\u00e4liko_. And still it rained and\nrained, until finally only the tops of the plants appeared above the\nwaters.\n\nThen the Prairie-dogs began to curse the rain and to fall off in flesh,\nfor they could no longer go to the fields to collect food, and the\nstores in their granaries were running low. At last they grew very\nhungry and lean and could hardly get about, for it rained and rained day\nafter day, so that they dare not go away from their holes, and their\nstores were all gone.\n\nThe old ones among the Prairie-dogs, the grandfathers, called a great\ncouncil; three or four of them came out of their houses, stood up on the\nmounds in front of their sky-holes, and called out \u201c_Wek wek,--wek\nwek,--wek wek,--wek wek!_\u201d in shrill, squeaky voices, so that the women\nand children in the holes round about exclaimed: \u201cGoodness, gracious!\nthe old ones are calling a council!\u201d And everybody trooped to the\ncouncil, which was gathered round the base of the Burrowing-owl\u2019s\nmountain.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said the chief spokesman or counsellor, \u201cyou see those wretched\nrainers keep dropping water until our fields of _mit\u00e4liko_ are flooded.\nThey ought to know that we are short of leg, and that we can\u2019t go into\nthe lakes to gather food, and here we are starving. Our women are dying,\nour children are crying, and we can scarcely go from door to door. Now,\nwhat is to be done? How can we stop the rain?--that is the question.\u201d\n\nThey talked and talked; they devised many plans, which were considered\nfutile, most of them having been tried already. At last a wise old\ngray-cheeked fellow suggested that it would be well to apply to their\ngrandfather, the Burrowing-owl, who lived in the top of the mountain.\n\n\u201cHear! hear!\u201d cried the council in one voice,--whereupon the old man who\nhad spoken was chosen as messenger to the Burrowing-owl.\n\nHe climbed to the top of the mountain, with many a rest, and at last got\nnear the doorway, and sitting down at a respectful distance, raised\nhimself on his haunches, folded his hands across his breast, then cried\nout: \u201c_Wek wek,--wek wek!_\u201d\n\nThe old grandfather Burrowing-owl, not in very good humor, stepped out,\nblinking his eyes and asked what was the matter. He said: \u201cIt isn\u2019t your\ncustom to come up to my house and make such a racket, though true enough\nit is that I hear your rackets down below. It cannot be for nothing that\nyou come; therefore, what is your message?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy grandfather,\u201d said the Prairie-dog, \u201cin council we have considered\nhow to stop the irrepressible rainers; but all of our efforts and\ndevices are quite futile, so that we are forced to apply to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, indeed,\u201d said the old Owl, scratching the corner of his eye with\nhis claw. \u201cGo down home, and I will see what I can do tomorrow morning.\nAs you all know very well, I am a priest. I will set aside four days for\nfasting and meditation and sacred labors. Please await the result.\u201d\n\nThe old Prairie-dog humbly bade him farewell and departed for his\nvillage below.\n\nNext morning the Burrowing-owl said to his wife: \u201cPut on a large\nquantity of beans, my old one, and cook them well,--small beans, of the\nkind that smell not pleasantly.\u201d He then bade her \u201cGood morning,\u201d and\nleft. He went about for a long time, hunting at the roots of bushes. At\nlast he found one of those ill-smelling Beetles, with its head stuck way\ndown in the midst of the roots. He grabbed him up, notwithstanding the\npoor creature\u2019s remonstrances, and took him home.\n\nWhen he arrived there, said he: \u201cMy friend, it seems to me you are\nmaking a great fuss about this thing, but I am not going to hurt you,\nexcept in one way,--by the presentation to you of all the food you can\neat.\u201d\n\n\u201cBless me!\u201d said the Tip-beetle, bobbing his head down into the ground\nand rearing himself into the air. Then he sat down quite relieved and\ncontented.\n\n\u201cOld woman,\u201d said the Burrowing-owl, \u201clay out a dish of the beans on the\nfloor.\u201d The wife complied. \u201cMy friend,\u201d said the Burrowing-owl to the\nTip-beetle, \u201cfall to and satisfy yourself.\u201d\n\nThe Tip-beetle, with another tip, sat down before the bowl of beans. He\nate, and swallowed, and gulped until he had entirely emptied the dish,\nand began to grow rather full of girth.\n\n\u201cNot yet satisfied?\u201d asked the Owl. \u201cOld woman, lay out another bowl.\u201d\n\nAnother large bowl of the bean soup was placed before the Tip-beetle,\nwho likewise gulped and gulped at this, and at last diminished it to\nnothing. Now, the Tip-beetle by this time looked like a well-blown-up\npaunch. Still, when the old Owl remarked \u201cIs there left of your\ncapacity?\u201d he replied: \u201cSomewhat; by the favor of a little more, I think\nI shall be satisfied.\u201d\n\n\u201cOld woman,\u201d said the Owl, \u201ca little more.\u201d\n\nThe old woman placed another bowl before the Tip-beetle; and he ate and\nate, and swallowed and swallowed, and gulped and sputtered; but with all\nthe standing up and wiggling of his head that he could do he could not\nfinish the bowl; and at last, wiping the perspiration from his brow, he\nexclaimed: \u201cThanks, thanks, I am satisfied.\u201d\n\n\u201cHa, indeed!\u201d said the Owl. Both the old woman and the Tip-beetle had\nnoticed, while the feast was going on, that the Owl had cut out a\ngood-sized round piece of buckskin, and he was running a thread round\nabout the edge of it, leaving two strings at either side, like the\nstrings with which one draws together a pouch. Just as the Tip-beetle\nreturned his thanks the old Owl had finished his work.\n\n\u201cMy friend,\u201d said he, turning to the Tip-beetle, \u201cyou have feasted to\nsatisfaction, and it appears to me by your motions that you are\nexceedingly uncomfortable, being larger of girth than is safe and well\nfor a Tip-beetle. Perhaps you are not aware that one who eats freely of\nbean soup is likely to grow still larger. I would advise you, therefore,\nwhen I lay this pouch on the floor, with the mouth of it toward you, to\nrun your head into it and exhale as much wind as possible; and to\nfacilitate this I will squeeze you slightly.\u201d\n\nThe Tip-beetle was not very well pleased with the proposition; still he\nby no means refused to comply.\n\n\u201cYou see,\u201d continued the Owl, \u201cyou are at once to be relieved of the\nserious consequences of your gluttony, while at the same time paying for\nyour food.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, this is an excellent idea, upon my word,\u201d replied the Tip-beetle,\nand forthwith he thrust himself into the bag. The old Owl embraced the\nTip-beetle and gently squeezed him, increasing the pressure as time went\non, until a large amount of his girth had been diminished; but behold!\nthe girth of the bag was swelled until it was so full with struggling\nwind that it could hardly be tied up! Outside, the rain was rattling,\nrattling.\n\nSaid the old Owl to the Tip-beetle: \u201cMy friend, if you do not mind the\nrain, which I dare say you do not, you may now return to your home. Many\nthanks for your assistance.\u201d\n\nThe Tip-beetle, likewise with expression of thanks, took his departure.\n\nWhen the morning of the fourth day came, and the rain still continued,\nin fact increased, the old Owl took the bag of wind out to the mount\nbefore his doorway.\n\nNow, you know that if one goes near a Tip-beetle and disturbs him, that\nTip-beetle will rear himself on his hands and head and disgorge breath\nof so pungent a nature that nobody can withstand it. Woe to the nose of\nthat man who is in the neighborhood! It will be so seared with this\nover-powering odor that it cannot sneeze, though desiring never so much\nto do so. You know, also, if you touch a Tip-beetle who is angry, all\nthe good water in Zu\u00f1i River will not remove from your fingers the\nmemory of that Beetle, whenever you chance to smell of them. And you\nknow, also, how small stewed beans with thick skins affect one.\nConceive, then, the power of the medicine contained in that little bag.\n\nThe old Owl, taking up a stick, hit the bag one whack. The clouds,\nbefore so thick, glaring with lightning, trembling and swirling with\nthunder, now began to thin out in the zenith and depart, and the\nsunlight sifted through. The Owl hit the bag another stroke,--behold,\nafar off scudded the clouds as before a fierce blast. Again the old Owl\nhit the bag. The clouds were resting on the far away mountain-tops\nbefore he had lowered his stick. Then, with one mighty effort, he gave\nthe bag a final whack, wholly emptying it of its contents, and the sky\nwas as clear as it is on a summer\u2019s day in the noon-time of a drought.\nSo potent was this all-penetrating and irresistible odor, that even the\nRain-gods themselves could not withstand it, and withdrew their forces\nand retired before it.\n\nOut from their holes trooped the Prairie-dogs, and sitting up on their\nhaunches all round about the mountain, they shouted at the tops of their\nshrill voices, \u201c_Wek wek,--wek wek,--wek wek!_\u201d in praise of their great\npriest, the Grandfather Burrowing-owl.\n\n * * * * *\n\nBehold, thus it was in the days of the ancients. And for that reason\nprairie-dogs and burrowing-owls have always been great friends. And the\nburrowing-owls consider no place in the world quite so appropriate for\nthe bringing forth, hatching, and rearing of their children as the holes\nof the prairie-dogs.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n [Illustration: ACROSS THE TERRACES OF ZU\u00d1I\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE GOPHER RACED WITH THE RUNNERS OF K\u2019I\u00c1KIME\n\n\nThere was a time in the days of the ancients when the runners of\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime were famed above those of all other cities in the Valley of\nSh\u00edwina for their strength, endurance, and swiftness of foot. In running\nthe _tikwa_, or kicked-stick race, they overcame, one after another, the\nrunners of Sh\u00edwina or Zu\u00f1i, of M\u00e1tsaki or the Salt City, of P\u00ednawa or\nthe Town of the Winds, and in fact all who dared to challenge them or to\naccept their challenges.\n\nThe people of Sh\u00edwina and M\u00e1tsaki did not give up easily. They ran again\nand again, only to be beaten and to lose the vast piles of goods and\nprecious things which they had staked or bet; and at last they were\nwholly disheartened and bereft of everything which without shame a man\nmight exhibit for betting.\n\nSo the people of the two towns called a council, and the old men and\nrunners gathered and discussed what could be done that the runners of\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime might be overcome. They thought of all the wise men and wise\nbeings they knew of; one after another of them was mentioned, and at\nlast a few prevailed in contending that for both wisdom and cunning or\ncraft the Gopher took precedence over all those who had been mentioned.\nForthwith a young man was dispatched to find an old Gopher who lived on\nthe side of the hill near which the race-course began.\n\nHe was out sunning himself, and finishing a cellar, when the young man\napproached him, and he called out: \u201cHa, grandson! Don\u2019t bother me this\nmorning; I am busy digging my cellars.\u201d\n\nThe young man insisted that he came with an important message from his\npeople. So the old Gopher ceased his work, and listened attentively\nwhile the young man related to him the difficulties they were in.\n\nSaid he: \u201cGo back, my grandson, and tell your people to challenge the\nrunners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime to run the race of the kicked stick with a runner\nwhom they have chosen, a single one, the fourth day from this day; and\ntell your people, moreover, that I will run the race for them, providing\nonly that the runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime will permit me to go my own way, on my\nown road, which as you know runs underground.\u201d\n\nThe youth thanked the old Gopher and was about to retire when the\nfat-sided, heavy-cheeked old fellow called to him to hold on a little.\n\u201cMind you,\u201d said he. \u201cTell your people also that they shall bet for me\nonly two things--red paint and sacred yellow pollen. These shall, as it\nwere, be the payment for my exertions, if I win, as I prize this sort of\npossession above all else.\u201d\n\nThe young man returned and reported what the Gopher had said. Thereupon\nthe people of Sh\u00edwina and M\u00e1tsaki sent a challenge to the people of\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime for a race, saying: \u201cWe bet all that we have against what you\nhave won from us from time to time that our runner, the Gopher, who\nlives beside the beginning of our race-course, will beat you in the\nrace, which we propose shall be the fourth day from this day. The only\ncondition we name is, that the Gopher shall be permitted to run in his\nown way, on his own road, which is underground.\u201d\n\nRight glad were the runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime to run against anyone proposed\nby those whom they had so often beaten. They hesitated not a moment in\nreplying that they would run against the Gopher or any other friend of\nthe people of M\u00e1tsaki and Sh\u00edwina, stipulating only that the Gopher, if\nhe ran underground, should appear at the surface occasionally, that they\nmight know where he was. So it was arranged, and the acceptance of the\nchallenge was reported to the Gopher, and the stipulation also which was\nnamed by the runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime.\n\nThat night the old Gopher went to his younger brother, old like himself,\nheavy-cheeked, gray-and-brown-coated, and dusty with diggings of his\ncellars. \u201cMy younger brother,\u201d said the old Gopher, \u201cthe fourth day from\nthis day I am to run a race. I shall start at the beginning of the\nrace-course of the people of K\u2019i\u00e1kime over here, which is near my home,\nas you know. There I shall dig two holes; one at the beginning of the\nrace-course, the other a little farther on. Now, here at your home, near\nthe Place of the Scratching Bushes, do you dig a hole, down below where\nthe race-course passes your place, off to one side of it, and another\nhole a little beyond the first. The means by which I shall be\ndistinguished as a racer will be a red plume tied to my head. Do you\nalso procure a red plume and tie it to your head. When you hear the\nthundering of the feet of the racers, run out and show yourself for a\nminute, and rush into the other hole as fast as you can.\u201d\n\n\u201cI understand what you would have of me, and right gladly will I do it.\nIt would please me exceedingly to take down the pride of those haughty\nrunners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime, or at least to help in doing it,\u201d replied the\nyounger brother.\n\nThe old Gopher went on to the Sitting Space of the Red Shell, where\ndwelt another of his younger brothers precisely like himself and the one\nhe had already spoken to, near whose home the race-course also ran. To\nhim he communicated the same information, and gave the same directions.\nThen he went on still farther to the place called K\u2019\u00f3pak\u2019yan, where\ndwelt another of his younger brothers. To him also he gave the same\ndirections; and to still another younger brother, who dwelt beneath the\nbase of the two broad pillars of Thunder Mountain, at the last\nturning-point of the race-course; and to another brother, who dwelt at\nthe Place of the Burnt Log; and lastly to another brother quite as\ncunning and inventive as himself, who dwelt just below K\u2019i\u00e1kime where\nthe race-course turned toward its end. When all these arrangements had\nbeen made, the old Gopher went back and settled himself comfortably in\nhis nest.\n\nBright and early on the fourth day preparations were made for the race.\nThe runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime had been fasting and training in the sacred\nhouses, and they came forth stripped and begirt for the racing, carrying\ntheir stick. Then came the people of M\u00e1tsaki and Sh\u00edwina, who gathered\non the plain, and there they waited. But they waited not long, for soon\nthe old Gopher appeared close in their midst, popping out of the ground,\nand on his head was a little red plume. He placed the stick which had\nbeen prepared for him, on the ground, where he could grab it with his\nteeth easily, saying: \u201cOf course, you will excuse me if I do not kick my\nstick, since my feet are so short that I could not do so. On the other\nhand,\u201d he said to the runners, \u201cyou do not have to dig your way as I do.\nTherefore, we are evenly matched.\u201d\n\nThe runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime, contemptuously laughing, asked him why he did\nnot ask for some privilege instead of talking about things which meant\nnothing to them.\n\nAt last the word was given. With a yell and a spring, off dashed the\nracers of K\u2019i\u00e1kime, gaily kicking their stick before them. Grabbing his\nstick in his teeth, into the ground plunged the old Gopher. Fearful lest\ntheir runner should be beaten, the people of Sh\u00edwina and M\u00e1tsaki ran to\na neighboring hill, watching breathlessly for him to appear somewhere in\nthe course of the race above the plain. Away over the plain in a cloud\nof dust swept the runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime. They were already far off, when\nsuddenly, some distance before them, out of the ground in the midst of\nthe race-course, popped the old Gopher, to all appearance, the red plume\ndusty, but waving proudly on his forehead. After looking round at the\nrunners, into the ground he plunged again. The people of Sh\u00edwina and\nM\u00e1tsaki yelled their applause. The runners of K\u2019i\u00e1kime, astounded that\nthe Gopher should be ahead of them, redoubled their efforts. When they\ncame near the Place of the Red Shell, behold! somewhat muddy round the\neyes and nose, out popped the old Gopher again, to all appearance. Of\ncourse it was his brother, the red plume somewhat heavy with dirt, but\nstill waving on his forehead.\n\nOn rushed the runners, and they had no sooner neared K\u2019\u00f3pak\u2019yan than\nagain they saw the Gopher in advance of them, now apparently covered\nwith sweat,--for this cunning brother had provided himself with a little\nwater which he rubbed over his fur and made it all muddy, as though he\nwere perspiring and had already begun to grow tired. He came out of his\nhole and popped into the other less quickly than the others had done;\nand the runners, who were not far behind him, raised a great shout and\npushed ahead. When they thought they had gained on him, behold! in their\npathway, all bedraggled with mud, apparently the same old Gopher\nappeared, moving with some difficulty, and then disappeared under the\nground again. And so on, the runners kept seeing the Gopher at\nintervals, each time a little worse off than before, until they came to\nthe last turning-place; and just as they reached it, almost in their\nmidst appeared the most bedraggled and worn out of all the Gophers.\nThey, seeing the red plume on his crest, almost obscured by mud and all\nflattened out, regarded him as surely the same old Gopher.\n\nFinally, the original old Gopher, who had been quietly sleeping\nmeanwhile, roused himself, and besoaking himself from the tip of his\nnose to the end of his short tail, wallowed about in the dirt until he\nwas well plastered with mud, half closing his eyes, and crawled out\nbefore the astonished multitude at the end of the goal, a sorry-looking\nobject indeed, far ahead of the runners, who were rapidly approaching. A\ngreat shout was raised by those who were present, and the runners of\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime for the first time lost all of their winnings, and had the\nswiftness, or at least all their confidence, taken out of them, as doth\nthe wind lose its swiftness when its legs are broken.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. By the skill and cunning of the\nGopher--who, by digging his many holes and pitfalls, is the opponent of\nall runners, great and small--was the race won against the swiftest\nrunners among the youth of our ancients. Therefore, to this day the\nyoung runners of Zu\u00f1i, on going forth to prepare for a race, take with\nthem the sacred yellow pollen and red paint; and they make for the\ngophers, round about the race-course in the country, beautiful little\nplumes, and they speak to them speeches in prayer, saying: \u201cBehold, O ye\nGophers of the plains and the trails, we race! And that we may have thy\naid, we give ye these things, which are unto ye and your kind most\nprecious, that ye will cause to fall into your holes and crannies and be\nhidden away in the dark and the dirt the sticks that are kicked by our\nopponents.\u201d\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE RATTLESNAKES CAME TO BE WHAT THEY ARE\n\n\nKnow you that long, long ago there lived at Yathlpew\u2019nan, as live there\nnow, many Rattlesnakes; but then they were men and women, only of a\nRattlesnake kind.\n\nOne day the little children of one of the houses there wished to go out\nto play at sliding down the sand-banks south of the Bitter Pond on the\nother side of our river. So they cried out to their parents: \u201cLet us go,\nO mother, grandmother, father! and take our little sister to play on the\nsunny side of the sand-banks.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy children,\u201d said the mother, \u201cgo if you wish, but be very careful of\nyour little sister; for she is young. Carry her gently on your\nshoulders, and place her where she will be safe, for she is very small\nand helpless.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes!\u201d cried the children. \u201cWe love our little sister, don\u2019t we,\nlittle one?\u201d said they, turning to the baby girl. Then they took her up\nin their mantles, and carried her on their shoulders out to the sunny\nside of the sand-banks; and there they began to play at sliding one\nafter another.\n\nThe little girl, immensely delighted with their sport, toddled out from\nthe place where they had set her down, just as one of the girls was\nspeeding down the side of the sand-hill. The little creature ran,\nclapping her hands and laughing, to catch her sister as she came; and\nthe elder one, trying in vain to stop herself, called out to her to\nbeware; but she was a little thing, and knew not the meaning of her\nsister\u2019s warning; and, alas! the elder one slid down upon her, knocked\nher over and rolled her in the sand, crushing her so that she died, and\nrolling her out very small.\n\nThe children all gathered around their little sister, and cried and\ncried. Finally they took her up tenderly, and, placing her on their\nshoulders, sang as they went slowly toward home:\n\n \u201c_Tchi-tola tsaaana!\n Tchi-tola tsaaana!\n Tchi-tola tsaaana!_\n\n _Ama ma hama seta!\n Ama ma hama seta!_\u201d\n\n Rattlesnake little-little!\n Rattlesnake little-little!\n Rattlesnake little-little!\n\n Alas, we bear her!\n Alas, we bear her!\n\nAs they approached the village of the Rattlesnakes, the mother of the\nlittle one looked out and saw them coming and heard their song.\n\n\u201cO, my children! my children!\u201d she cried. \u201cYe foolish little ones, did I\nnot tell ye to beware and to be careful, O, my children?\u201d Then she\nexclaimed--rocking herself to and fro, and wriggling from side to side\nat the same time, casting her hands into the air, and sobbing wildly--\n\n \u201c_Ayaa mash toki!\n Ayaa mash toki!\n Hai! i i i i!_\u201d[15]\n\nand fell in a swoon, still wriggling, to the ground.\n\n [15] It is impossible to translate this exclamation, as it is\n probably archaic, and it is certainly the intention that its\n meaning shall not be plain. Judging from its etymology, I should\n think that its meaning might be:\n\n \u201cOh, alas! our little maiden!\n Oh, alas! our little maiden!\n Ala-a-a-a-a-s!\u201d\n\nWhen the old grandmother saw them coming, she too said:\n\n \u201c_Ayaa mash toki!\n Ayaa mash toki!\n Hai! i i i i!_\u201d\n\nAnd as one after another in that village saw the little child, so\nbeloved, brought home thus mutilated and dead, each cried out as the\nothers had cried:\n\n \u201c_Ayaa mash toki!\n Ayaa mash toki!\n Hai! i i i i!_\u201d\n\nand all swooned away; and the children also who were bringing the little\none joined in the cry of woe, and swooned away. And when they all\nreturned to life, behold, they could not arise, but went wriggling along\nthe ground, faintly crying, as Rattlesnakes wriggle and cry to this day.\n\nSo you see that once--as was the case with many, if not all, of the\nanimals--the Rattlesnakes were a people, and a splendid people too.\nTherefore we kill them not needlessly, nor waste the lives even of other\nanimals without cause.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE CORN-PESTS WERE ENSNARED\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients, long, long ago, there lived in our town,\nwhich was then called the Middle Ant Hill of the World, a proud maiden,\nvery pretty and very attractive, the daughter of one of the richest men\namong our people. She had every possession a Zu\u00f1i maiden could wish\nfor,--blankets and mantles, embroidered dresses and sashes, buckskins\nand moccasins, turquoise earrings and shell necklaces, bracelets so many\nyou could not count them. She had her father and mother, brothers and\nsisters, all of whom she loved very much. Why, therefore, should she\ncare for anything else?\n\nThere was only one thing to trouble her. Behold! it came of much\npossession, for she had large corn-fields, so large and so many that\nthose who planted and worked them for her could not look after them\nproperly, and no sooner had the corn ears become full and sweet with the\nmilk of their being than all sorts of animals broke into those fields\nand pulled down the corn-stalks and ate up the sweet ears of corn. Now,\nhow to remove this difficulty the poor girl did not know.\n\nYes, now that I think of it, there was another thing that troubled her\nvery much, fully as much as did the corn-pests,--pests of another kind,\nhowever, for there wasn\u2019t an unmarried young man in all the valley of\nour ancients who was not running mad over the charms of this girl.\nBesides all that, not a few of them had an eye on so many possessions,\nand thought her home wouldn\u2019t be an uncomfortable place to live in. So\nthey never gave the poor girl any peace, but hung round her house, and\ncame to visit her father so constantly that at last she determined to\nput the two pests together and call them one, and thereby get rid, if\npossible, of one or the other. So, when these young men were very\nimportunate, she would say to them, \u201cLook you! if any one of you will go\nto my corn-fields, and destroy or scare away, so that they will never\ncome back again, the pests that eat up my corn, him I will marry and\ncherish, for I shall respect his ability and ingenuity.\u201d\n\nThe young men tried and tried, but it was of no use. Before long,\neverybody knew of this singular proposition.\n\nThere was a young fellow who lived in one of the outer towns, the\npoorest of the poor among our people; and not only that, but he was so\nugly that no woman would ever look at him without laughing.\n\nNow, there are two kinds of laugh with women. One of them is a very good\nsort of thing, and makes young men feel happy and conceited. The other\nkind is somewhat heartier, but makes young men feel depressed and very\nhumble. It need not be asked which kind was laughed by the women when\nthey saw this ugly, ragged, miserable-looking young man. He had bright\ntwinkling eyes, however, and that means more than all else sometimes.\n\nNow, this young man came to hear of what was going on. He had no\npresent to offer the girl, but he admired her as much as--yes, a good\ndeal more than--if he had been the handsomest young man of his time. So\njust in the way that he was he went to the house of this girl one\nevening. He was received politely, and it was noticeable to the old\nfolks that the girl seemed rather to like him,--just as it is noticeable\nto you and me today that what people have they prize less than what they\nhave not. The girl placed a tray of bread before the young man and bade\nhim eat; and after he had done, he looked around with his twinkling\nlittle eyes. And the old man said, \u201cLet us smoke together.\u201d And so they\nsmoked.\n\nBy-and-by the old man asked if he were not thinking of something in\ncoming to the house of a stranger. And the young man replied, it was\nvery true; he had thoughts, though he felt ashamed to say it, but he\neven wished to be accepted as a suitor for his daughter.\n\nThe father referred the matter to the girl, and she said she would be\nvery well satisfied; then she took the young man aside and spoke a few\nwords to him,--in fact, told him what were the conditions of his\nbecoming her accepted husband. He smiled, and said he would certainly\ntry to the best of his ability, but this was a very hard thing she\nasked.\n\n\u201cI know it is,\u201d said the girl; \u201cthat is why I ask it.\u201d\n\nNow, the young man left the house forthwith. The next day he very\nquietly went down into the corn-fields belonging to the girl, and over\ntoward the northern mesa, for that is where her corn-fields were--lucky\nbeing! He dug a great deep pit with a sharp stick and a bone shovel.\nNow, when he had dug it--very smooth at the sides and top it was--he\nwent to the mountain and got some poles, placing them across the hole,\nand over these poles he spread earth, and set up corn-stalks just as\nthough no hole had been dug there; then he put some exceedingly tempting\nbait, plenty of it, over the center of these poles, which were so weak\nthat nobody, however light of foot, could walk over them without\nbreaking through.\n\nNight came on, and you could hear the Coyotes begin to sing; and the\nwhole army of pests--Bears, Badgers, Gophers, all sorts of creatures, as\nthey came down slowly, each one in his own way, from the mountain. The\nCoyotes first came into the field, being swift of foot; and one of them,\nnosing around and keeping a sharp lookout for watchers, happened to espy\nthose wonderfully tempting morsels that lay over the hole.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d said he (Coyotes don\u2019t think much what they are doing), and he\ngave a leap, when in he went--sticks, dirt, bait, and all--to the bottom\nof the hole. He picked himself up and rubbed the sand out of his eyes,\nthen began to jump and jump, trying to get out; but it was of no use,\nand he set up a most doleful howl.\n\nHe had just stopped for breath, when a Bear came along. \u201cWhat in the\nname of all the devils and witches are you howling so for?\u201d said he.\n\u201cWhere are you?\u201d\n\nThe Coyote swallowed his whimpers immediately, set himself up in a\ncareless attitude, and cried out: \u201cBroadfoot, lucky, lucky, lucky\nfellow! Did you hear me singing? I am the happiest creature on the face\nof the earth, or rather under it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat about? I shouldn\u2019t think you were happy, to judge from your\nhowling.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy! Mercy on me!\u201d cried the Coyote, \u201cI was singing for joy.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow\u2019s that?\u201d asked the Bear.\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d said the Coyote, \u201cI came along here this evening and by the\nmerest accident fell into this hole. And what do you suppose I found\ndown here? Green-corn, meat, sweet-stuff, and everything a corn-eater\ncould wish for. The only thing I lacked to complete my happiness was\nsomeone to enjoy the meal with me. Jump in!--it isn\u2019t very deep--and\nfall to, friend. We\u2019ll have a jolly good night of it.\u201d\n\nSo the old Bear looked down, drew back a minute, hesitated, and then\njumped in. When the Bear got down there, the Coyote laid himself back,\nslapped his thighs, and laughed and laughed and laughed. \u201cNow, get out\nif you can,\u201d said he to the Bear. \u201cYou and I are in a pretty mess. I\nfell in here by accident, it is true, but I would give my teeth and eyes\nif I could get out again!\u201d\n\nThe Bear came very near eating him up, but the Coyote whispered\nsomething in his ear. \u201cGood!\u201d yelled the Bear. \u201cHa! ha! ha! Excellent\nidea! Let us sing together. Let them come!\u201d\n\nSo they laughed and sang and feasted until they attracted almost every\ncorn-pest in the fields to the spot to see what they were doing. \u201cKeep\naway, my friends,\u201d cried out the Coyote. \u201cNo such luck for you. We got\nhere first. Our spoils!\u201d\n\n\u201cCan\u2019t I come?\u201d \u201cCan\u2019t I come?\u201d cried out one after another.\n\n\u201cWell, yes,--no,--there may not be enough for you all.\u201d \u201cCome on,\nthough; come on! who cares?\u201d--cried out the old Bear. And they rushed in\nso fast that very soon the pit-hole was almost full of them, scrambling\nto get ahead of one another, and before they knew their predicament they\nwere already in it. The Coyote laughed, shuffled around, and screamed at\nthe top of his voice; he climbed up over his grandfather the Bear,\nscrambled through the others, which were snarling and biting each other,\nand, knowing what he was about, skipped over their backs, out of the\nhole, and ran away laughing as hard as he could.\n\nNow, the next morning down to the corn-field came the young man. Drawing\nnear to the pit he heard a tremendous racket, and going to the edge and\npeering in he saw that it was half filled with the pests which had been\ndestroying the corn of the maiden,--every kind of creature that had ever\nmeddled with the corn-fields of man, there they were in that deep pit;\nsome of them all tired out, waiting for \u201cthe end of their daylight,\u201d\nothers still jumping and crawling and falling in their efforts to get\nout.\n\n\u201cGood! good! my friends,\u201d cried the young man. \u201cYou must be cold; I\u2019ll\nwarm you up a little.\u201d So he gathered a quantity of dry wood and threw\nit into the pit. \u201cBe patient! be patient!\u201d said he. \u201cI hope I don\u2019t hurt\nany of you. It will be all over in a few minutes.\u201d Then he lighted the\nwood and burned the rascals all up. But he noticed the Coyote was not\nthere. \u201cWhat does it matter?\u201d said he. \u201cOne kind of pest a man can\nfight, but not many.\u201d\n\nSo he went back to the house of the girl and reported to her what he had\ndone. She was so pleased she hardly knew how to express her gratitude,\nbut said to the young man with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her\neye, \u201cAre you quite sure they were all there?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, they were all there except the Coyote,\u201d said the young man; \u201cbut I\nmust tell you the truth, and somehow he got out or didn\u2019t get in.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho cares for a Coyote!\u201d said the girl. \u201cI would much rather marry a\nman with some ingenuity about him than have all the Coyotes in the world\nto kill.\u201d Whereupon she accepted this very ugly but ingenious young man;\nand it is notable that ever since then pretty girls care very little how\ntheir husbands look, being pretty enough themselves for both. But they\nlike to have them able to think and guess at a way of getting along\noccasionally. Furthermore, what does a rich girl care for a rich young\nman? Ever since then, even to this day, as you know, rich girls almost\ninvariably pick out poor young men for their husbands, and rich young\nmen are sure to take a fancy to poor girls.\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. The Coyote got out of the trap\nthat was set for him by the ugly young man. That is the reason why\ncoyotes are so much more abundant than any other corn-pests in the land\nof Zu\u00f1i, and do what you will, they are sure to get away with some of\nyour corn, anyhow.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Frog and tadpoles}]\n\n\n\n\nJACK-RABBIT AND COTTONTAIL\n\n\nAnciently the Jack-rabbit lived in a sage plain, and the Cottontail\nrabbit lived in a cliff hard by. They saw the clouds gather, so they\nwent out to sing. The long-legged Jack-rabbit sang for snow, thus:\n\n \u201c_U pi na wi sho, U pi na wi sho,\n U kuk uku u kuk!_\u201d\n\nBut the short-legged Cottontail sang for rain, like this:\n\n \u201c_Hatchi ethla ho na an saia._\u201d\n\nThat\u2019s what they sung--one asking for snow, the other for rain; hence to\nthis day the P\u00f3k\u2019ia (Jack-rabbit) runs when it snows, the \u00c2\u2032kshiko\n(Cottontail) when it rains.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Two rabbits}]\n\n\n\n\nTHE RABBIT HUNTRESS AND HER ADVENTURES\n\n\nIt was long ago, in the days of the ancients, that a poor maiden lived\nat K\u2019yawana Tehua-tsana (\u201cLittle Gateway of Zu\u00f1i River\u201d). You know there\nare black stone walls of houses standing there on the tops of the cliffs\nof lava, above the narrow place through which the river runs, to this\nday.\n\nIn one of these houses there lived this poor maiden alone with her\nfeeble old father and her aged mother. She was unmarried, and her\nbrothers had all been killed in wars, or had died gently; so the family\nlived there helplessly, so far as many things were concerned, from the\nlack of men in their house.\n\nIt is true that in making the gardens--the little plantings of beans,\npumpkins, squashes, melons, and corn--the maiden was able to do very\nwell; and thus mainly on the products of these things the family were\nsupported. But, as in those days of our ancients we had neither sheep\nnor cattle, the hunt was depended upon to supply the meat; or sometimes\nit was procured by barter of the products of the fields to those who\nhunted mostly. Of these things this little family had barely enough for\ntheir own subsistence; hence, they could not procure their supplies of\nmeat in this way.\n\nLong before, it had been a great house, for many were the brave and\nstrong young men who had lived in it; but the rooms were now empty, or\nat best contained only the leavings of those who had lived there, much\nused and worn out.\n\nOne autumn day, near winter-time, snow fell, and it became very cold.\nThe maiden had gathered brush and firewood in abundance, and it was\npiled along the roof of the house and down underneath the ladder which\ndescended from the top. She saw the young men issue forth the next\nmorning in great numbers, their feet protected by long stockings of\ndeerskin, the fur turned inward, and they carried on their shoulders and\nstuck in their belts stone axes and rabbit-sticks. As she gazed at them\nfrom the roof, she said to herself: \u201cO that I were a man and could go\nforth, as do these young men, hunting rabbits! Then my poor old mother\nand father would not lack for flesh with which to duly season their food\nand nourish their lean bodies.\u201d Thus ran her thoughts, and before night,\nas she saw these same young men coming in, one after another, some of\nthem bringing long strings of rabbits, others short ones, but none of\nthem empty-handed, she decided that, woman though she was, she would set\nforth on the morrow to try what luck she might find in the killing of\nrabbits herself.\n\nIt may seem strange that, although this maiden was beautiful and young,\nthe youths did not give her some of their rabbits. But their feelings\nwere not friendly, for no one of them would she accept as a husband,\nalthough one after another of them had offered himself for marriage.\n\nFully resolved, the girl that evening sat down by the fireplace, and\nturning toward her aged parents, said: \u201cO my mother and father, I see\nthat the snow has fallen, whereby easily rabbits are tracked, and the\nyoung men who went out this morning returned long before evening heavily\nladen with strings of this game. Behold, in the other rooms of our house\nare many rabbit-sticks, and there hang on the walls stone axes, and with\nthese I might perchance strike down a rabbit on his trail, or, if he run\ninto a log, split the log and dig him out. So I have thought during the\nday, and have decided to go tomorrow and try my fortunes in the hunt,\nwoman though I be.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Naiya_, my daughter,\u201d quavered the feeble old mother; \u201cyou would\nsurely be very cold, or you would lose your way, or grow so tired that\nyou could not return before night, and you must not go out to hunt\nrabbits, woman as you are.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, certainly not,\u201d insisted the old man, rubbing his lean knees and\nshaking his head over the days that were gone. \u201cNo, no; let us live in\npoverty rather than that you should run such risks as these, O my\ndaughter.\u201d\n\nBut, say what they would, the girl was determined. And the old man said\nat last: \u201cVery well! You will not be turned from your course. Therefore,\nO daughter, I will help you as best I may.\u201d He hobbled into another\nroom, and found there some old deerskins covered thickly with fur; and\ndrawing them out, he moistened and carefully softened them, and cut out\nfor the maiden long stockings, which he sewed up with sinew and the\nfiber of the yucca leaf. Then he selected for her from among the old\npossessions of his brothers and sons, who had been killed or perished\notherwise, a number of rabbit-sticks and a fine, heavy stone axe.\nMeanwhile, the old woman busied herself in preparing a lunch for the\ngirl, which was composed of little cakes of corn-meal, spiced with\npepper and wild onions, pierced through the middle, and baked in the\nashes. When she had made a long string of these by threading them like\nbeads on a rope of yucca fiber, she laid them down not far from the\nladder on a little bench, with the rabbit-sticks, the stone axe, and the\ndeerskin stockings.\n\nThat night the maiden planned and planned, and early on the following\nmorning, even before the young men had gone out from the town, she had\nput on a warm, short-skirted dress, knotted a mantle over her shoulder\nand thrown another and larger one over her back, drawn on the deerskin\nstockings, had thrown the string of corn-cakes over her shoulder, stuck\nthe rabbit-sticks in her belt, and carrying the stone axe in her hand\nsallied forth eastward through the Gateway of Zu\u00f1i and into the plain of\nthe valley beyond, called the Plain of the Burnt River, on account of\nthe black, roasted-looking rocks along some parts of its sides.\nDazzlingly white the snow stretched out before her,--not deep, but\nunbroken,--and when she came near the cliffs with many little ca\u00f1ons in\nthem, along the northern side of the valley, she saw many a trail of\nrabbits running out and in among the rocks and between the bushes.\n\nWarm and excited by her unwonted exercise, she did not heed a coming\nsnow-storm, but ran about from one place to another, following the\ntrails of the rabbits, sometimes up into the ca\u00f1ons, where the forests\nof pi\u00f1on and cedar stood, and where here and there she had the good\nfortune sometimes to run two, three, or four rabbits into a single\nhollow log. It was little work to split these logs, for they were small,\nas you know, and to dig out the rabbits and slay them by a blow of the\nhand on the nape of the neck, back of the ears; and as she killed each\nrabbit she raised it reverently to her lips, and breathed from its\nnostrils its expiring breath, and, tying its legs together, placed it on\nthe string, which after a while began to grow heavy on her shoulders.\nStill she kept on, little heeding the snow which was falling fast; nor\ndid she notice that it was growing darker and darker, so intent was she\non the hunt, and so glad was she to capture so many rabbits. Indeed, she\nfollowed the trails until they were no longer visible, as the snow fell\nall around her, thinking all the while: \u201cHow happy will be my poor old\nfather and mother that they shall now have flesh to eat! How strong will\nthey grow! And when this meat is gone, that which is dried and preserved\nof it also, lo! another snow-storm will no doubt come, and I can go out\nhunting again.\u201d\n\nAt last the twilight came, and, looking around, she found that the snow\nhad fallen deeply, there was no trail, and that she had lost her way.\nTrue, she turned about and started in the direction of her home, as she\nsupposed, walking as fast as she could through the soft, deep snow. Yet\nshe reckoned not rightly, for instead of going eastward along the\nvalley, she went southward across it, and entering the mouth of the\nDescending Plain of the Pines, she went on and on, thinking she was\ngoing homeward, until at last it grew dark and she knew not which way to\nturn.\n\n\u201cWhat harm,\u201d thought she, \u201cif I find a sheltered place among the rocks?\nWhat harm if I remain all night, and go home in the morning when the\nsnow has ceased falling, and by the light I shall know my way?\u201d\n\nSo she turned about to some rocks which appeared, black and dim, a short\ndistance away. Fortunately, among these rocks is the cave which is known\nas Taiuma\u2019s Cave. This she came to, and peering into that black hole,\nshe saw in it, back some distance, a little glowing light. \u201cHa, ha!\u201d\nthought she; \u201cperhaps some rabbit-hunters like myself, belated\nyesterday, passed the night here and left the fire burning. If so, this\nis greater good fortune than I could have looked for.\u201d So, lowering the\nstring of rabbits which she carried on her shoulder, and throwing off\nher mantle, she crawled in, peering well into the darkness, for fear of\nwild beasts; then, returning, she drew in the string of rabbits and the\nmantle.\n\nBehold! there was a bed of hot coals buried in the ashes in the very\nmiddle of the cave, and piled up on one side were fragments of broken\nwood. The girl, happy in her good fortune, issued forth and gathered\nmore sticks from the cliff-side, where dead pi\u00f1ons are found in great\nnumbers, and bringing them in little armfuls one after another, she\nfinally succeeded in gathering a store sufficient to keep the fire\nburning brightly all the night through. Then she drew off her\nsnow-covered stockings of deerskin and the bedraggled mantles, and,\nbuilding a fire, hung them up to dry and sat down to rest herself. The\nfire burned up and glowed brightly, so that the whole cave was as light\nas a room at night when a dance is being celebrated. By-and-by, after\nher clothing had dried, she spread a mantle on the floor of the cave by\nthe side of the fire, and, sitting down, dressed one of her rabbits and\nroasted it, and, untying the string of corn-cakes her mother had made\nfor her, feasted on the roasted meat and cakes.\n\nShe had just finished her evening meal, and was about to recline and\nwatch the fire for awhile, when she heard away off in the distance a\nlong, low cry of distress--\u201c_Ho-o-o-o thlaia-a!_\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d thought the girl, \u201csomeone, more belated than myself, is lost;\ndoubtless one of the rabbit-hunters.\u201d She got up, and went nearer to the\nentrance of the cavern.\n\n\u201c_Ho-o-o-o thlaia-a!_\u201d sounded the cry, nearer this time. She ran out,\nand, as it was repeated again, she placed her hand to her mouth, and\ncried, woman though she was, as loudly as possible: \u201c_Li-i thlaia-a!_\u201d\n(\u201cHere!\u201d)\n\nThe cry was repeated near at hand, and presently the maiden, listening\nfirst, and then shouting, and listening again, heard the clatter of an\nenormous rattle. In dismay and terror she threw her hands into the air,\nand, crouching down, rushed into the cave and retreated to its farthest\nlimits, where she sat shuddering with fear, for she knew that one of the\nCannibal Demons of those days, perhaps the renowned \u00c1tahsaia of the\neast, had seen the light of her fire through the cave entrance, with his\nterrible staring eyes, and assuming it to be a lost wanderer, had cried\nout, and so led her to guide him to her place of concealment.\n\nOn came the Demon, snapping the twigs under his feet and shouting in a\nhoarse, loud voice: \u201c_Ho lithlsh t\u00e2 ime!_\u201d (\u201cHo, there! So you are in\nhere, are you?\u201d) _Kothl!_ clanged his rattle, while, almost fainting\nwith terror, closer to the rock crouched the maiden.\n\nThe old Demon came to the entrance of the cave and bawled out: \u201cI am\ncold, I am hungry! Let me in!\u201d Without further ado, he stooped and tried\nto get in; but, behold! the entrance was too small for his giant\nshoulders to pass. Then he pretended to be wonderfully civil, and said:\n\u201cCome out, and bring me something to eat.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have nothing for you,\u201d cried the maiden. \u201cI have eaten my food.\u201d\n\n\u201cHave you no rabbits?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome out and bring me some of them.\u201d\n\nBut the maiden was so terrified that she dared not move toward the\nentrance.\n\n\u201cThrow me a rabbit!\u201d shouted the old Demon.\n\nThe maiden threw him one of her precious rabbits at last, when she\ncould rise and go to it. He clutched it with his long, horny hand, gave\none gulp and swallowed it. Then he cried out: \u201cThrow me another!\u201d She\nthrew him another, which he also immediately swallowed; and so on until\nthe poor maiden had thrown all the rabbits to the voracious old monster.\nEvery one she threw him he caught in his huge, yellow-tusked mouth, and\nswallowed, hair and all, at one gulp.\n\n\u201cThrow me another!\u201d cried he, when the last had already been thrown to\nhim.\n\nSo the poor maiden was forced to say: \u201cI have no more.\u201d\n\n\u201cThrow me your overshoes!\u201d cried he.\n\nShe threw the overshoes of deerskin, and these like the rabbits he\nspeedily devoured. Then he called for her moccasins, and she threw them;\nfor her belt, and she threw it; and finally, wonderful to tell, she\nthrew even her mantle, and blanket, and her overdress, until, behold,\nshe had nothing left!\n\nNow, with all he had eaten, the old Demon was swollen hugely at the\nstomach, and, though he tried and tried to squeeze himself through the\nmouth of the cave, he could not by any means succeed. Finally, lifting\nhis great flint axe, he began to shatter the rock about the entrance to\nthe cave, and slowly but surely he enlarged the hole and the maiden now\nknew that as soon as he could get in he would devour her also, and she\nalmost fainted at the sickening thought. Pound, pound, pound, pound,\nwent the great axe of the Demon as he struck the rocks.\n\nIn the distance the two War-gods were sitting in their home at\nThla-uthla (the Shrine amid the Bushes) beyond Thunder Mountain, and\nthough far off, they heard thus in the middle of the night the pounding\nof the Demon\u2019s hammer-axe against the rocks. And of course they knew at\nonce that a poor maiden, for the sake of her father and mother, had been\nout hunting,--that she had lost her way and, finding a cave where there\nwas a little fire, entered it, rebuilt the fire, and rested herself;\nthat, attracted by the light of her fire, the Cannibal Demon had come\nand besieged her retreat, and only a little time hence would he so\nenlarge the entrance to the cave that he could squeeze even his great\nover-filled paunch through it and come at the maiden to destroy her. So,\ncatching up their wonderful weapons, these two War-gods flew away into\nthe darkness and in no time they were approaching the Descending Plain\nof the Pines.\n\nJust as the Demon was about to enter the cavern, and the maiden had\nfainted at seeing his huge face and gray shock of hair and staring eyes,\nhis yellow, protruding tusks, and his horny, taloned hand, they came\nupon the old beast, and, each one hitting him a welt with his war-club,\nthey \u201cended his daylight,\u201d and then hauled him forth into the open\nspace. They opened his huge paunch and withdrew from it the maiden\u2019s\ngarments, and even the rabbits which had been slain. The rabbits they\ncast away amongst the soap-weed plants that grew on the slope at the\nfoot of the cliff. The garments they spread out on the snow, and by\ntheir knowledge cleansed and made them perfect, even more perfect than\nthey had been before. Then, flinging the huge body of the giant Demon\ndown into the depths of the ca\u00f1on, they turned them about and, calling\nout gentle words to the maiden, entered and restored her; and she,\nseeing in them not their usual ugly persons, but handsome youths (as\nlike to one another as are two deer born of the same mother), was\ngreatly comforted; and bending low, and breathing upon their hands,\nthanked them over and over for the rescue they had brought her. But she\ncrouched herself low with shame that her garments were but few, when,\nbehold! the youths went out and brought in to her the garments they had\ncleaned by their knowledge, restoring them to her.\n\nThen, spreading their mantles by the door of the cave, they slept there\nthat night, in order to protect the maiden, and on the morrow wakened\nher. They told her many things, and showed her many things which she had\nnot known before, and counselled her thus: \u201cIt is not fearful that a\nmaiden should marry; therefore, O maiden, return unto thy people in the\nVillage of the Gateway of the River of Zu\u00f1i. This morning we will slay\nrabbits unnumbered for you, and start you on your way, guarding you down\nthe snow-covered valley, and when you are in sight of your home we will\nleave you, telling you our names.\u201d\n\nSo, early in the morning the two gods went forth; and flinging their\nsticks among the soap-weed plants, behold! as though the soap-weed\nplants were rabbits, so many lay killed on the snow before these mighty\nhunters. And they gathered together great numbers of these rabbits, a\nstring for each one of the party; and when the Sun had risen clearer in\nthe sky, and his light sparkled on the snow around them, they took the\nrabbits to the maiden and presented them, saying: \u201cWe will carry each\none of us a string of these rabbits.\u201d Then taking her hand, they led her\nout of the cave and down the valley, until, beyond on the high black\nmesas at the Gateway of the River of Zu\u00f1i, she saw the smoke rise from\nthe houses of her village. Then turned the two War-gods to her, and they\ntold her their names. And again she bent low, and breathed on their\nhands. Then, dropping the strings of rabbits which they had carried\nclose beside the maiden, they swiftly disappeared.\n\nThinking much of all she had learned, she continued her way to the home\nof her father and mother; and as she went into the town, staggering\nunder her load of rabbits, the young men and the old men and women and\nchildren beheld her with wonder; and no hunter in that town thought of\ncomparing himself with the Maiden Huntress of K\u2019yawana Tehua-tsana. The\nold man and the old woman, who had mourned the night through and sat up\nanxiously watching, were overcome with happiness when they saw their\ndaughter returning; and as she laid the rabbits at their feet, she said:\n\u201cBehold! my father and my mother, foolish have I been, and much danger\nhave I passed through, because I forgot the ways of a woman and assumed\nthe ways of a man. But two wondrous youths have taught me that a woman\nmay be a huntress and yet never leave her own fireside. Behold! I will\nmarry, when some good youth comes to me, and he will hunt rabbits and\ndeer for me, for my parents and my children.\u201d\n\nSo, one day, when one of those youths who had seen her come in laden\nwith rabbits, and who had admired her time out of mind, presented\nhimself with a bundle at the maiden\u2019s fireside, behold! she smilingly\nand delightedly accepted him. And from that day to this, when women\nwould hunt rabbits or deer, they marry, and behold, the rabbits and deer\nare hunted.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE UGLY WILD BOY WHO DROVE THE BEAR AWAY FROM SOUTHEASTERN MESA\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients there lived with his old grandmother, not\nfar from K\u2019i\u00e1kime, east, where the sweet wafer-bread is pictured on the\nrocks, a frightfully ugly boy. The color of his body and face was blue.\nHe had a twisted nose, crooked scars of various colors ran down each\nside of his face, and he had a bunch of red things like peppers on his\nhead; in fact, in all ways he resembled the _H\u00e9hea_, or the wild men of\nthe Sacred Dance who serve as runners to the priest-clowns.\n\nNow, one season it had rained so much that the pi\u00f1on trees were laden\nwith nuts, and the datilas were heavy with fruit, and the gray grass and\nred-top were so heavy with seeds that even when the wind did not blow\nthey bent as if in a breeze.\n\nIn vain the people of K\u2019i\u00e1kime went to the Southeastern Mesa, where the\nnut trees and datilas and grass grew. They could not gather the nuts and\nthe fruit and the seeds, because of the ugly old Bear who claimed the\ncountry and its products for his own, and waxed fat thereon. Some of the\npeople were killed by him, others were maimed, and all the rest were\ndriven away.\n\nOne day the ugly little boy said to his grandmother: \u201cO grandmother, I\nam going out to gather datilas and pi\u00f1on nuts on the Southeastern Mesa.\u201d\n\n\u201cChild, child!\u201d cried the grandmother, \u201cdo not go; do not, by any\nmeans, go! You know very well there is an ugly Bear there who will\neither kill you or maim you frightfully.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t care for all that!\u201d cried the boy; \u201cI am going!\u201d Whereupon he\nwent.\n\nHe followed the trail called the Road of the Pending Meal-sack, and he\nclimbed the crooked path up Shoyakoskwe (Southeastern Mesa), and\nadvanced over the wide plateau. No sooner had he begun to pluck the\nsweet datila fruit and eat of it, and had cracked between his teeth an\noccasional pi\u00f1on nut, than \u201c_Wha-a-a-a!_\u201d snarled the old Bear; and he\ncame rushing out of the nearest thicket toward the boy.\n\n\u201c_U shoma kutchi kihe!_\u201d shouted the boy. \u201cFriend, friend, don\u2019t bite\nme! It\u2019ll hurt! Don\u2019t bite me! I came to make a bargain with you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019d like to know why I shouldn\u2019t bite you!\u201d growled the Bear. \u201cI\u2019ll\ntear you to pieces. What have you come to my country for, stealing my\nfruit and nuts and grass-seed?\u201d\n\n\u201cI came to get something to eat,\u201d replied the boy. \u201cYou have plenty.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed, I have not. I will let you pick nothing. I will tear you to\npieces!\u201d said the Bear.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t, don\u2019t, and I will make a bargain with you,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cWho should talk of bargains to me?\u201d yelled the Bear, cracking a small\npine-tree to pieces with his paws and teeth, so great was his rage.\n\n\u201cThese things are no more yours than mine,\u201d said the boy, \u201cand I\u2019ll\nprove it.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow?\u201d asked the Bear.\n\n\u201cThey are mine; they are not yours!\u201d cried the boy.\n\n\u201cThey are mine, I tell you! They are not yours!\u201d replied the Bear.\n\n\u201cThey are mine!\u201d retorted the boy.\n\nAnd so they might have wrangled till sunset, or torn one another into\npieces, had it not been for a suggestion that the boy made.\n\n\u201cLook here! I\u2019ll make a proposition to you,\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d asked the Bear.\n\n\u201cWhoever is certain of his rights on this plateau and the things that\ngrow on it must prove it by not being scared by anything that the other\ndoes,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d laughed the Bear, in his big, coarse voice. \u201cThat is a good\nplan, indeed. I am perfectly willing to stand the test.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, now, one of us must run away and hide,\u201d said the boy, \u201cand then\nthe other must come on him unaware in some way and frighten him, if he\ncan.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said the Bear. \u201cWho first?\u201d\n\n\u201cJust as you say,\u201d said the boy.\n\n\u201cWell, then, I will try you first,\u201d said the Bear, \u201cfor this place\nbelongs to me.\u201d Whereupon he turned and fled into the thicket. And the\nboy went around picking datilas and eating them, and throwing the skins\naway. Presently the Bear came rushing out of the thicket, snapping the\ntrees and twigs, and throwing them about at such a rate that you would\nhave thought there was a sandstorm raging through the forest.\n\n \u201c_Ku hai yaau!\n Ku pekwia nu!\n Ha! ha! ha! haaaa!_\u201d\n\nhe exclaimed, rushing at the boy from the rear.\n\nThe boy stirred never so much as a leaf, only kept on champing his\ndatilas.\n\nAgain the Bear retired, and again he came rushing forth and snarling\nout: \u201c_Ha! ha! ha! hu! hu! hu!_\u201d in a terrific voice, and grabbed the\nboy; but never so much as the boy\u2019s heart stirred.\n\n\u201cBy my senses!\u201d exclaimed the Bear; \u201cyou are a man, and I must give it\nup. Now, suppose you try me. I can stand as much frightening as you,\nand, unless you can frighten me, I tell you you must keep away from my\ndatila and pi\u00f1on patch.\u201d\n\nThen the boy turned on his heel and fled away toward his grandmother\u2019s\nhouse, singing as he went:\n\n \u201c_Kuyaina itoshlakyanaa!\n Kuyaina itoshlakyanaa!_\u201d\n\n He of the pi\u00f1on patch frightened shall be!\n He of the pi\u00f1on patch frightened shall be!\n\n\u201cOh! shall he?\u201d cried his grandmother. \u201cI declare, I am surprised to see\nyou come back alive and well.\u201d\n\n\u201cHurry up, grandmother,\u201d said the boy, \u201cand paint me as frightfully as\nyou can.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right, my son; I will help you!\u201d So she blackened the right side\nof his face with soot, and painted the left side with ashes, until he\nlooked like a veritable demon. Then she gave him a stone axe of ancient\ntime and magic power, and she said: \u201cTake this, my son, and see what you\ncan do with it.\u201d\n\nThe boy ran back to the mountain. The Bear was wandering around eating\ndatilas. The boy suddenly ran toward him, and exclaimed:\n\n \u201c_Ai yaaaa!\n He! he! he! he! he! he! he! tooh!_\u201d--\n\nand he whacked the side of a hollow pi\u00f1on tree with his axe. The tree\nwas shivered with a thundering noise, the earth shook, and the Bear\njumped as if he had been struck by one of the flying splinters. Then,\nrecovering himself and catching sight of the boy, he exclaimed: \u201cWhat a\nfool I am, to be scared by that little wretch of a boy!\u201d But presently,\nseeing the boy\u2019s face, he was startled again, and exclaimed: \u201cBy my\neyes, the Death Demon is after me, surely!\u201d\n\nAgain the boy, as he came near, whacked with his magic axe the body of\nanother tree, calling out in a still louder voice. The earth shook so\nmuch and the noise was so thunderous that the Bear sneezed with\nagitation. And again, as the boy came still nearer, once more he struck\na tree a tremendous blow, and again the earth thundered and trembled\nmore violently than ever, and the Bear almost lost his senses with\nfright and thought surely the Corpse Demon was coming this time. When,\nfor the fourth time, the boy struck a tree, close to the Bear, the old\nfellow was thrown violently to the ground with the heaving of the earth\nand the bellowing of the sounds that issued forth. Picking himself up as\nfast as he could, never stopping to see whether it was a boy or a devil,\nhe fled to the eastward as fast as his legs would carry him, and, as he\nheard the boy following him, he never stopped until he reached the Zu\u00f1i\nMountains.\n\n\u201cThere!\u201d said the boy; \u201cI\u2019ll chase the old rogue no farther. He\u2019s been\nliving all these years on the mountain where more fruit and nuts and\ngrass-seed grow than a thousand Bears could eat, and yet he\u2019s never let\nso much as a single soul of the town of K\u2019i\u00e1kime gather a bit.\u201d\n\nThen the boy returned to his grandmother, and related to her what had\ntaken place.\n\n\u201cGo,\u201d said she, \u201cand tell the people of K\u2019i\u00e1kime, from the top of yonder\nhigh rock, that those who wish to go out to gather grass-seed and\ndatilas and pi\u00f1on nuts need fear no longer.\u201d\n\nSo the boy went out, and, mounting the high rock, informed and directed\nthe people as follows:\n\n\u201cYe of the Home of the Eagles! Ye do I now inform, whomsoever of ye\nwould gather datilas, whomsoever of ye would gather pi\u00f1on nuts,\nwhomsoever of ye would gather grass-seed, that bread may be made, hie ye\nover the mountains, and gather them to your hearts\u2019 content, for I have\ndriven the Bear away!\u201d\n\nA few believed in what the boy said; and some, because he was ugly,\nwould not believe it and would not go; and thus were as much hindered\nfrom gathering grass-seed and nuts for daily food as if the Bear had\nbeen really there. You know people nowadays are often frightened by such\na kind of Bear as this.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. And therefore the Zu\u00f1i\nMountains to this day are filled with bears; but they rarely descend to\nthe mesas in the southwest, being fully convinced from the experience of\ntheir ancestor that the Corpse Demon is near and continues to lie in\nwait for them. And our people go over the mountains as they will, even\nwomen and children, and gather datila fruit, pi\u00f1on nuts, and grass-seed\nwithout hindrance.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE REVENGE OF THE TWO BROTHERS ON THE H\u00c1WIKUHKWE, OR THE TWO LITTLE\nONES[16] AND THEIR TURKEYS\n\n(THE ORIGIN OF THE PRIESTS AND CHIEFS OF THE DANCE OF VICTORY)\n\n [16] This term refers to the two Gods of War, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and\n M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, who, as has been seen in previous tales, were\n accounted immortal twin youths of small size.\n\n\nLong, long ago, there lived on Twin Mountain, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and his younger\nbrother, with their grandmother. They had a large flock of Turkeys of\nwhich they were very fond, but were not so attentive to them as they\nshould have been. Said the grandmother to the boys, late one morning:\n\u201cLet your poor Turkeys out, for they will starve, poor birds, if you do\nnot let them out oftener.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut they will run away, grandmother,\u201d said the two boys, who did not\nfancy herding them much of the time.\n\n\u201cWhy should they run away?\u201d asked the vexed grandmother, who had a sorry\nenough time managing the two heedless boys. \u201cRest assured they will come\nback when roosting-time comes, for such is their custom.\u201d\n\nSo the Twain ran down and reluctantly let their Turkeys go. The Turkeys\nwere many--dirty old hens, piping, long-legged youngsters, and noisy\nold cocks; but they were all more noisy when they were let out, and not\nlong was it before they were straying far beyond the border of woods and\ntoward H\u00e1wikuh.\n\nNot long after noon the flock of Turkeys strolled, gobbling and\nchirping, into the valley north of H\u00e1wikuh[17] where many of the people\nof that pueblo had corn-fields. Some young men who were resting from\ntheir hoeing heard the calls of the Turkeys, and, starting up, saw\nacross the valley a larger flock than they had ever been wont to find.\nOf course they were crazy. They started up and ran as fast as they could\ntoward the pueblo, calling out as they went what they had discovered, so\nthat all the people in the fields began to gather in. As soon as they\ncame within the pueblo, they sought out the Priests of the Bow and told\nthem what they had discovered.\n\n [17] H\u00e1wikuh, or Aguico of the Spaniards, a pueblo now in ruins\n across the valley northwestward from Ojo Caliente, the\n southwestern farming town of the Zu\u00f1is.\n\nVery quickly ran the priests to the tops of the houses, and they began\nto call out to their people: \u201cYe we would this day make wise, for our\nsons tell us of many Turkeys in the valley over the hill; so hasten ye\nto gather together good bows and arrows, boomerangs, and strings, that\nye may be made happy and add unto your flocks and make more plentiful\nthe plumes in your feather boxes.\u201d\n\nIn a very short time the people were rushing out of their doorways all\nprepared for the chase, and they ran after the young men and leaders as\nthough in a race of the kicked stick.\n\nNow, the sage-bushes and grasses grow tall to this day in the valley\nnorth of H\u00e1wikuh, and so they grew in the days long, long ago that I\ntell of. It thus happened that the poor Turkeys who were racing after\ngrasshoppers, and peeping, and calling, and gobbling, did not know that\nthe H\u00e1wikuh people were after them until they heard some old hens\ncalling out in alarm from behind. Even then they were unable to get\naway, for the people were around them shouting and hurling crooked\nsticks, and shooting sharp arrows at them in all directions. Soon they\nbegan to fall on every side, especially the long-legged young ones, who\nso tangled their legs in the grasses that they could not keep up with\ntheir mothers, and were easily overtaken by the hunters of H\u00e1wikuh; and\nthe old hens who stayed behind to look after the young ones were no\nbetter, and the cocks who stayed back to look after the old hens were\neven worse off, for the people sought them most because their feathers\nwere so much brighter.\n\nSo it happened in a very short time that more than half the flock were\nkilled and others were falling when a half-grown Long-leg started as\nfast as he could alone toward Twin Mountain.\n\nIt was growing late, and \u00c1haiy\u00fata and his younger brother and their old\ngrandmother were on top of their house shading their eyes and watching\nfor the return of the Turkeys, when they saw the solitary young Long-leg\ncoming, all out of breath and his wings dragging, over the hill below\nMaster Ca\u00f1on.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d said the younger brother; \u201clook! there comes a Long-legs,--and\nwhat is he shouting?--Jump up, brother, jump up! Do you hear that?\u201d\n\n\u201c_I-wo-loh-kia-a--a--a!_\u201d called the Turkey, so that they could just\nhear him; and as that means \u201cMurder! Murder!\u201d you may think to yourself\nhow much they were excited; but they were not so much alarmed as the old\ngrandmother, \u201cfor,\u201d said they, one to the other, \u201cit is nothing but a\nyoungster, anyway, and they are always more scared than the old ones.\u201d\n\nNevertheless, they hastened down to meet him, and as they approached\nthey saw that he was terribly frightened, so they anxiously waited until\nhe breathed more easily and would stand still; then they asked: \u201cWhat is\nit? Where is it? Why do you come alone, crying \u2018Murder, Murder!\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas! my fathers,\u201d exclaimed the Turkey. \u201cAlas! I, alone, am left to\ntell of it; ere I left they were thrown down all around me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho did this?\u201d angrily demanded the boys.\n\n\u201cThe people of H\u00e1wikuh,\u201d exclaimed the Turkey, glancing apprehensively\naround.\n\n\u201cHa! we shall yet win back our loss,\u201d ejaculated the boys to one\nanother; and then they turned to the Turkey. \u201cAre they all murdered and\ngone?\u201d they asked.\n\n\u201cYes, alas! yes; I alone am left,\u201d moaned the young Turkey.\n\n\u201cOh, no!\u201d broke in the elder brother, \u201cthere will yet many return, for\nthis is but a Long-leg, and surely when he could save himself others and\nolder ones could.\u201d Even then they heard some of the Turkeys calling to\none another, out of breath over the low hills. \u201c_U-kwa-tchi!_\u201d (\u201cDidn\u2019t\nI tell you!\u201d) exclaimed \u00c1haiy\u00fata, and they started toward the mountain.\n\nOne by one, or in little bunches, the Turkeys came fleeing in, scared,\nweary, and bedraggled; and the boys knew by this, and that only a few\nafter all returned, that the Long-leg had not been for nothing taught to\nfear. They betook themselves to their house. There they sat down to eat\nwith their grandmother, and after the eating was finished, they poked\nlittle sticks into the blazing fire on the hearth, and cried out to\ntheir grandmother: \u201cTomorrow, grandmother, we will gather fagots.\u201d\n\n\u201cFoolish, foolish boys!\u201d crooned the old grandmother.\n\n\u201cAye, tomorrow we will gather sprouts. Where do they grow thickest and\nstraightest, grandmother?\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, you boys had better let sprouts and war alone,\u201d retorted the\ngrandmother.\n\n\u201cBut we must win back our losing,\u201d cried the boys, with so much\nvehemence that the grandmother only shook her head and exclaimed:\n\u201c_A-ti-ki!_ (\u201cBlood!\u201d) Strange creatures, my grandchildren, both!\u201d\nwhereupon the two boys poked one the other and laughed.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d added the grandmother, \u201cI have warned you; now act your own\nthoughts\u201d;--and the boys looked at her as earnestly as though they knew\nnothing of what she would say. \u201cFine warriors, indeed, who do not know\nwhere to look for arrow-sticks! But if you will go sprouting, why, over\nthere in the Rain-pond Basin are plenty of sprouts, and then north on\nScale Ridge grow more, and over in Oak Ca\u00f1on are fine oak-sprouts, more\nthan ten boys like you could carry, and above here around Great Mountain\nare other kinds, and everywhere grow sprouts enough, if people weren\u2019t\nbeasts passing understanding; and, what\u2019s more, I could tell you boys\nsomething to your advantage if you would ever listen to your old\ngrandmother, but--\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it? What is it?\u201d interrupted the boys excitedly, just as if\nthey knew nothing of what she would say.\n\n\u201cWhy, over there by the Rain-pond Basin lives your grandfather--\u201d\n\n\u201cWho\u2019s that? Who\u2019s that?\u201d interrupted the boys again.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve a mind not to tell you, you shameless little beasts, another\nword,\u201d jerked out the old grandmother, sucking her lips as if they were\nmarrowbones, and digging into the pudding she was stirring as though it\nwere alive enough to be killed,--\u201cjust as though I were not telling you\nas fast as I could; and, besides, anything but little beasts would know\ntheir grandfather--why, the Rainbow-worm, of course!\u201d[18]\n\n [18] One of the \u201cmeasuring-worms\u201d which is named the rainbow, on\n account of his streaked back and habit of bending double when\n travelling.\n\n\u201cThe Rainbow-worm our grandfather, indeed!\u201d persisted the boys; and\nthey would have said more had not their grandmother, getting cross,\nraised the pudding-stick at them, and bid them \u201cshut up!\u201d So they\nsubsided, and the old woman continued: \u201cYes, your grandfather, and for\nshame!--You may sit there and giggle all you please, but your\ngrandfather the Rainbow-worm is a great warrior, I can tell you, and if\nyou boys will go sprouting, why, I can tell you, you will fare but with\npoverty the day after, if you do not get him to help you, that\u2019s all!\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed,\u201d replied the boys, quite respectfully.\n\n\u201cYes, that I tell you; and, moresoever, over there beyond at the wood\nborder, in a pond, is your other grandfather, and he is a great warrior,\ntoo.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed!\u201d exclaimed the boys, as though they did not know that already,\nalso.\n\n\u201cYes, and you must go to see him, too; for you can\u2019t get along without\nhim any more than without the other. Now, you boys go to sleep, for you\nwill want to get up very early in the morning, and you must go down the\npath and straight over the little hills to where your grandfathers live,\nand not up into the Master Ca\u00f1on to gather your sticks, for if you do\nyou will forget all I\u2019ve told you. You are creatures who pass\ncomprehension, you two grandchildren of mine.\u201d\n\nSo the two boys lay down in the corner together under one robe, like a\nman and his wife, for they did not sleep apart like our boys. But, do\nyou know, those two mischievous boys giggled and kicked one another,\nand kept turning about, just as though they never dreamed of the\nmorning. Then they fell to quarrelling about who could turn over the\nquicker.\n\n\u201cI can,\u201d said the elder brother.\n\n\u201cYou can\u2019t!\u201d\n\n\u201cI can!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, you can\u2019t!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I can, and I\u2019ll show you\u201d; and he was about to brace himself for\nthe trial when the old grandmother strode over with her pudding-stick,\nlifting it in the air, with her usual expression of \u201cBlood! my\ngrandchildren both,\u201d when they quieted down and pretended to sleep; but\nstill they kept giggling and trying to pull the cover off each other.\n\n\u201cStop that gaping and fooling, will you? And go to sleep, you nasty\nlittle cubs!\u201d cried the irritated old woman; and laughing outright at\ntheir poor old grandmother, they put their arms around each other and\nfell asleep.\n\nNext morning the sun rose, till he shone straight over the mountain, but\nstill the two boys were asleep. The old grandmother had gone out to\nwater her garden, and now she was sitting on the house-top shading her\neyes and looking down the trail she had told the boys to follow, to see\nthem come out of the shadow.\n\nAfter she had strained her poor old eyes till they watered, she grew\nimpatient: \u201cDid I ever see such boys! Now they\u2019ve gone and played me\nanother trick. They\u2019ll rue their pranks some day.\u201d Then she thought she\nwould go down and get some mush for breakfast. As she climbed down the\nladder, she heard a tremendous snoring. \u201cHo, ho!\u201d exclaimed the old\ngrandmother; and striding across the room she shook the boys soundly.\n\u201cGet up, get up! you lazy creatures; fine sprouters, you!\u201d\n\nThe boys rolled over, rubbed their eyes, and began to stretch.\n\n\u201cGet up, get up! the day is warmed long ago; fine warriors, you!\u201d\nreiterated the old woman, giving them another shaking.\n\nThe boys sat up, stretched, gaped, rubbed their eyes, and scratched\ntheir heads--the dirtiest little fellows ever seen--but they were only\nmaking believe. Their arms were crusty with dirt, and their hair stood\nout like down on a wild milkweed after a rain-storm, and yet these boys\nwere the handsomest children that ever lived--only they were fooling\ntheir old grandmother, you see.\n\n\u201cYou\u2019d better be down at the spring washing your eyes at sunrise,\ninstead of scratching your heads here with the sun shining already down\nthe sky-hole\u201d; croaked the old woman.\n\n\u201cWhat! is the sun out?\u201d cried the boys in mock surprise; but they knew\nwhat time it was as well as the old crone did.\n\n\u201cOut! I should say it was! You boys might as well go to sleep again. A\nfine bundle of sticks you could get today, with the sun done climbing up\nalready.\u201d\n\nSo the boys pretended to be in a great hurry and, grabbing up their\nbows and quivers, never stopped to half dress nor heeded the old woman\u2019s\noffer of food, but were jumping down the crags like mountain goats\nbefore the old woman was up the ladder.\n\n\u201c_Atiki!_\u201d exclaimed the grandmother; \u201cthese beasts that cause\nmeditation!\u201d Then she climbed the terrace and watched and watched and\nwatched; but the boys liked nothing better than to worry their old\ngrandmother, so they ran up Master Ca\u00f1on and into the woods and so\nacross to Rain-pond Basin, leaving the old woman to look as she would.\n\n\u201c_Uhh!_\u201d groaned the old woman; \u201cthey are down among the rocks playing.\nFine warriors, they!\u201d and with this she went back to her cooking.\n\nBy-and-by the boys came to the edge of the basin where the pod plant\ngrew. Sure enough, there was the Rainbow-worm, eating leaves as though\nhe were dying of hunger--a great fat fellow, as big as the boys\nthemselves; for long, long ago, in the days I tell you of, the\nRainbow-worm was much bigger than he is now.\n\n\u201cHold on,\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cLet\u2019s frighten the old fellow.\u201d\n\nSo they sneaked up until they were close to the grandfather, and then\nthey began to tickle him with a stalk. Amiwili--that was his\nname--twitched his skin and bit away faster and faster at the leaves,\nuntil \u00c1haiy\u00fata shouted at the top of his voice, \u201c_Ha-u-thla!_\u201d which\nmade the old man jump and turn back so quickly that he would have\nbroken his back had he a back-bone.\n\n\u201c_Shoma!_\u201d he exclaimed. \u201cIt\u2019s my grandchildren, is it? I am old and a\nlittle deaf, and you frightened me, my boys.\u201d\n\n\u201cDid we frighten you, grandfather? That\u2019s too bad. Well, never mind;\nwe\u2019ve come to you for advice.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat\u2019s that, my grandchildren?\u201d looking out of his yellow eyes as\nthough he were very wise, and standing up on his head and tail as though\nthey had been two feet.\n\n\u201cWhy, you see,\u201d said the boys, \u201cwe had a big drove of Turkeys, and we\nlet them out to feed yesterday, but the fools got too near H\u00e1wikuh and\nthe people there killed many, many of them; so we have decided to get\nback our winnings and even the game with them, the shameless beasts!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh ha!\u201d exclaimed old Amiwili. \u201cVery well!\u201d and he lay down on his\nbelly and lifted his head into the air like a man resting on his elbows.\n\u201cAh ha!\u201d said he, with a wag of his head and a squint of his goggle. \u201cAh\nha! Very well! I\u2019ll show them that they are not to treat my\ngrandchildren like that. I\u2019m a warrior, every direction of me--and there\nare a great many directions when I get angry, now, I can tell you! I\u2019m\njust made to use up life,\u201d said he, with another swagger of his head.\n\n\u201cListen to that!\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma to his brother.\n\n\u201cTo use up life, that\u2019s what I\u2019m for,\u201d added the old man, with\nemphasis; \u201cI\u2019ll show the H\u00e1wikuhkwe!\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you come to the council?\u201d asked the two boys.\n\n\u201c_Shuathla_,\u201d swaggered the old man--which is a very old-fashioned word\nthat our grandfathers used when they said: \u201cGo ye but before me.\u201d\n\nSo the boys skipped over to the pool at the wood border. There was their\nold grandfather, the Turtle, with his eyes squinted up, paddling round\nin the scum, and stretching his long neck up to bite off the heads of\nthe water-rushes.\n\n\u201cLet\u2019s have some fun with the old Shield-back,\u201d said the boys to one\nanother. \u201cJust you hold a moment, brother elder,\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma as he\nfitted an arrow to the string and drew it clean to the point. _Tsi-i-i-i\nthle-e-e!_ sang the arrow as it struck the back of the old Turtle; and\nalthough he was as big as the Turtles in the big Waters of the World now\nare, the force and fright ducked him under the scum like a chip, and he\ncame up with his eyes slimy and his mouth full of spittle, and his legs\nflying round too fast to be counted. When he spied the two boys, he\ncursed them harder than their grandmother did, but they hardly heard\nhim, for their arrow glanced upward from his back and came down so\nstraight that they had to run for their lives. \u201c_Atiki!_ troublesome\nlittle beasts, who never knew what shame nor dignity was!\u201d exclaimed the\nold fellow.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t be angry with us, grandpa,\u201d said the boys. \u201cYou must be deaf, for\nwe called and called to you, but you only paddled round and ate rushes;\nso we thought we would fire an arrow at you, for you know we couldn\u2019t\nget at you.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, that\u2019s it! Well, what may my grandchildren be thinking of, in thus\ncoming to see me? It cannot be for nothing,\u201d reflected the old man, as\nhe twisted his head up toward them and pushed the scum with his tail.\n\n\u201cQuite true, grandfather; we\u2019ve started out sprouting, and had to come\nto our grandfather for advice.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, what is it then?\u201d queried the old Shield-back.\n\n\u201cYou see, we have a flock of Turkeys--\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I know,\u201d interrupted the old man, \u201cfor they came down here to\ndrink yesterday and broke my morning nap with their \u2018_quit quit\nquittings!_\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d resumed the boys, \u201cthey went toward the H\u00e1wikuhkwe, and the\nshameless beasts, that they are, turned out and killed very nearly all\nof them, and we\u2019re going to even matters with them; that\u2019s why we are\nout sprouting.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh ha!\u201d cried the old man, paddling up nearer to the bank. \u201cGood! Well,\nthat\u2019s right, my grandchildren; you show that you are the wise boys that\nyou are to come to me. I\u2019m a great warrior, I am, for though I have\nneither bow nor arrow, yet the more my enemies have, the worse for\nthemselves, that\u2019s all. You two just wait until tomorrow,\u201d and he\nstretched his head out until it looked as though he kept a snake in his\nshell.\n\n\u201cWill you help us?\u201d asked the boys. (They knew very well he would like\nnothing better.)\n\n\u201cOf course, my grandchildren.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you come to the council?\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, my grandchildren two. How many will be there?\u201d called the\nold fellow.\n\n\u201cThe house shall be as full as a full stomach,\u201d retorted the boys,\njousting each other.\n\n\u201c_Thluathl\u00e1!_\u201d gruffly said Etawa, for that was the Turtle\u2019s name.\n\nSo the boys started for Oak-wood Ca\u00f1on, and, arrived there, soon had a\nlarge bundle of branches cut down with their big flint knives, and four\nstout, dry oak-sticks. They shouldered their \u201csprouts\u201d and started home,\nand, although they had bundles big enough to almost hide them, they\ntrotted along as though they had nothing. On their way they picked up a\nlot of obsidian, and went fast enough until they were near their home,\nand then they were \u201cvery tired\u201d--so tired that the old grandmother, when\nshe caught sight of them, pitied them, and hurried down to stir some\nmush for them. She buried some corn-cakes in the ashes, too, and roasted\nsome prairie-dogs in the same way; so that when those two lying little\nrascals came up and seemed so worn-out, she hurried so fast to get their\nfood ready that it made her sinews twitch.\n\nWhen the boys had eaten all they could and cracked a few prairie-dog\nbones, they fell to breaking the sprouts. They worked with their stone\nchips very fast, and soon had barked all they wanted. These they\nstraightened by passing them through their horns[19] and placed them\nbefore the fire. While the shafts were drying, they broke up the\nobsidian, and laying chips of it on a stone covered with buckskin,\nquickly fashioned them into sharp arrow-heads with the points of other\nstones, and these they fastened to the ends of the shafts, placing\nfeathers of the eagle on the other ends, until they had made enough for\nfour big bundles. Then they made a bow of each of the four oak-sticks,\nand stood them up to dry against the wall.\n\n [19] Fragments of mountain-sheep horn are used to this day by\n the Zu\u00f1is for the same purpose. They are flattened by heat and\n perforated with holes of varying size. By introducing the shaft\n to be straightened, and rubbing with a twisting motion the inner\n sides of the crooked portions, they are gradually straightened\n out, afterward to be straightened by hand from time to time as\n they dry before the fire.\n\nAs it grew dark they heard something like a dry leaf in a little wind.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said one to the other, \u201cour grandfather comes\u201d; and sure enough\npresently Amiwili poked his yellow eyes in at the door, but quickly drew\nback again.\n\n\u201c_Kutchi!_\u201d said he, \u201cyour fire is fearful; it scares me!\u201d\n\n\u201cThe grandfather cometh!\u201d exclaimed the boys. \u201cCome in; sit down.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well. Ah! you are stretching shafts, are you?\u201d said the old Worm,\ncrawling around behind the boys and into the darkest corner he could\nfind.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied they. \u201cWhy do you not come out into the light, grandpa?\u201d\n\n\u201c_Kutchi!_ I fear the fire; it hurts my eyes, and makes me feel as the\nsun does after a rain-storm and I have no leaves to crawl into.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the boys. \u201cGrandmother, spread a robe for him in the\ncorner.\u201d Then they busied themselves straightening some of the arrows\nand trying their bows. Just as they were pulling one toward the entrance\nway, they heard old Etawa thumping along, and immediately the old fellow\ncalled out: \u201cHold on; don\u2019t thump me against one of those sticks of\nyours; they jar a fellow so!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, it\u2019s you, is it, grandfather? Well, we\u2019re only trying our new bows;\ncome in and sit down.\u201d So the old fellow bumped along in and took his\nplace by the fire, for he did not care whether it was hot or cold.\n\n\u201cAre the councillors here?\u201d asked he, wagging his head around.\n\n\u201cWhy, certainly,\u201d said the two boys; \u201cand now our council is so full we\nhad better proceed to discuss what we had better do.\u201d\n\nWhen the old Turtle discovered that the boys had been playing him a\njoke, he was vexed, but he didn\u2019t show it. \u201cAmiwili here?\u201d asked he.\n\u201c_Tchukwe!_ We four will teach those H\u00e1wikuhkwe!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, indeed!\u201d croaked the Rainbow-worm.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the boys, \u201cat daybreak tomorrow morning, before it is\nlight, we shall start for H\u00e1wikuh-town.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d responded Amiwili. \u201cCome to my place first, and let me know\nwhen you start.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd,\u201d added Etawa, \u201ccome to my place next and let me know. When you\nboys get to H\u00e1wikuh and alarm the people, if they get too thick for you,\ncome back to my house as fast as you can, and you, M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, take me\nup on your back. Then you two run toward your other grandfather\u2019s house.\nI\u2019ll show these H\u00e1wikuhkwe that I can waste life as much as anybody,\neven if I have no arrows to shoot at them.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d added the Rainbow-worm, \u201cand when you come up to my house, just\nrun past me and I\u2019ll take care of the rest of them. I\u2019m made to use up\nlife, I am,\u201d swaggered he.\n\n\u201cAnd I,\u201d boasted the old Turtle. \u201cCome, brother, let us be going, for we\nhave a long way to travel, and our legs are short.\u201d So, after feasting,\nthe two started away.\n\nAs soon as they had gone, the two boys went to their corner and lay down\nto rest, first filling their quivers with arrows, and laying their\nwater-shield[20] out on the floor. They were presently quiet, and then\nbegan to snore; so their old grandmother went into another room and\nbrought out a new bowl which she filled with water. Then she retired\ninto the room again, and when she came out she was dressed in beautiful\nembroidered mantles and skirts and decorated with precious ornaments of\nshell and turquoise.\n\n [20] The _kia-al-lan_, or water-shield, is represented in modern\n times by a beautiful netting of white cotton threads strung on a\n round hoop, with a downy plume suspended from the center. This,\n with the dealings of \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma with arrows of\n lightning, and the simile of their father the Sun, leaves little\n doubt that they are, in common with mystic creations of the\n Aryans, representatives of natural phenomena or their agents.\n This is even more closely suggested by the sequel.\n\nThe noise she made awoke \u00c1haiy\u00fata, who punched his younger brother, and\nsaid: \u201cWake up, wake up! Here\u2019s grandmother dressed as though she were\ngoing to a dance!\u201d\n\nThen the younger brother raised his voice to a sharp whisper (they knew\nperfectly well what the old grandmother was intending to do): \u201cWhat\nfor?\u201d\n\n\u201cHere!\u201d said the old woman, turning toward the bed. \u201cGo to sleep! What\nare you never-weary little beasts doing now? For shame! You pretend you\nare going out to war tomorrow!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy are you dressed so, grandmother?\u201d ventured the younger.\n\n\u201cWhat _should_ I be dressed for but to make medicine for you two? Now,\nmind, you must not watch me. I shall make the medicine and place it in\nthese two cane tubes, and you must shoot them into the middle of the\nplaza of H\u00e1wikuh as soon as you get there. That will make the people\nlike women; for the canes will break and make the medicine fly about\nlike mist, and whomsoever gets his skin wet by it, will become no more\nof a warrior than a woman. Go to sleep, I say, you pests!\u201d\n\nBut the boys had no intention of sleeping. To be sure, they stretched\nthemselves out and slyly laid their arms across their eyes. The old\ngrandmother did not notice this at first. She began to wash her arms in\nthe bowl of water. Then she rubbed them so hard that the _yepna_\n(\u201csubstance of flesh\u201d) was rolled off in little lumps and fell into the\nwater. This she began to mix carefully with the water, when \u00c1haiy\u00fata\nwhispered to the other: \u201cBrother younger, just look! Old grandmother\u2019s\narms look as bright as a young girl\u2019s. Look, look!\u201d said he, still\nlouder, for the other had already begun to giggle; but when the old\nwoman turned to talk sharply at them, they turned over, the rascals, as\ndutifully as though they had never joked with their poor old\ngrandmother. Soon they were indeed sleeping.\n\nThen the grandmother proceeded to fill the canes with the fluid, and\nthen she fastened these to the ends of two good arrows. \u201cThere!\u201d she\nexclaimed, with a sigh; and after she had chanted an incantation over\nthe canes, she laid some food near the boys and softly left the room, to\nsleep.\n\nThe boys never minded the things they had to do in the morning, but\nslept soundly until the coming of day, when they arose, took their bows\nand quivers, knives, war-clubs, arrows, and water-shield, and quietly\nstole away.\n\nIt was not long ere they approached the house of Amiwili. He was fairly\ngorging the leaves of all the lizard plants he could lay hold of, and\nalready looked so full that he must have felt like a ball. But he\nmunched away so busily that he wouldn\u2019t have looked at the boys had it\nbeen light enough.\n\n\u201cHow did our grandfather come unto the morning?\u201d asked they.\n\n\u201c_Thluathl\u00e1!_\u201d (\u201cGet out!\u201d) was all the old Worm vouchsafed them\nbetween his cuds; and they sped on.\n\nSoon they reached the home of the old Turtle. This old grandfather was\nmore leisurely. \u201cYou will return at the height of the sun,\u201d said he.\n\u201cNow mind what I told you last night. I\u2019ll wait right here on the bank\nfor you.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d laughed the boys, for little they cared that they were on\nthe war-path.\n\nBy-and-by they neared the town of H\u00e1wikuh. It was twilight, for the\nmorning star was high. The boys sat down a moment and sang an\nincantation,--the same our fathers and children, the _\u00c1pithlan Sh\u00edwani_,\nsing now. Then the younger brother ran round the pueblo to scout. Two or\nthree people were getting up, as he could see, for nearly everybody\nslept on the roofs, it was so warm.\n\n\u201c_Iwolohkia-a-a!_\u201d cried he, at the top of his voice; and as the people\nwere rousing he drew one of the cane arrows full length in his bow, and\nso straight and high did he shoot, that it fell _thl-i-i-i-i!_ into the\nmiddle of the plaza, splitting and scattering medicine-water in every\ndirection, so that the people all exclaimed, as they rubbed their eyes:\n\u201cHo! it is raining, and yet the sky is clear! And didn\u2019t some one cry\n\u2018Murder, murder!\u2019\u201d\n\nWhen \u00c1haiy\u00fata\u2019s arrow struck, it scattered more medicine-water upon\nthem, until they thought they must be dreaming of rain; but just then\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma shouted, \u201c_Ho-o-o!_ Murder!\u201d again, and everybody started to\nhunt bows and arrows. Then the boy ran to the hiding-place of his\nbrother in the grass on the trail toward the wood border, and just as he\ngot there, some of the people who were shouting and gabbling to one\nanother ran out to see him.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d they shouted, \u201cthere they are, on the northern trail.\u201d\n\nSo the H\u00e1wikuhkwe all poured down toward them, but when they arrived\nthere they found no enemy. While the people were looking and running\nabout, _tsok tsok_, and _tsok tsok_, and _tsok tsok_, the arrows of\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata, and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma struck the nearest ones, for they had crawled\nalong the trail and were waiting in the grass. They never missed. Every\nman they struck fell, but many, many came on, and when these saw that\nthere were only two, their faces were all the more to the front with\nhaste. Still the two boys shot, shot, shot at them until many were\nkilled or wounded before the remainder decided to flee.\n\n\u201cCome, brother, my arrows are gone,\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cQuick!\nput on the water-shield, and let us be off!\u201d Now, the people were\ngaining on them faster and faster, but \u00c1haiy\u00fata threw water like thick\nrain from his shield strapped over his back, so that the enemies\u2019\nbow-strings loosened, and they had to stop to tighten them again and\nagain.\n\nWhenever the H\u00e1wikuhkwe pressed them too closely, the water-shield\nsprinkled them so thoroughly that when they nocked an arrow the sinew\nbow-string stretched like gum, and all they could do was to stop and\ntighten their bow-strings again. Thus the boys were able to near the\nhome of their grandfather, the big Turtle, now and then shooting at the\nleaders with their warring arrows and rarely missing their marks.\n\nBut as they came near, the people were gathering more and more thickly\nin their rear, so that M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma barely had time to take his\ngrandfather--who was waiting on the bank of the pond--upon his back.\n\n\u201cNow, run you along in front and we\u2019ll follow behind,\u201d said old Etawa,\nas he put one paw over the left shoulder and the other under the right\narm, and clasped his legs tightly around the loins of M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma so as\nto hug close to his back.\n\n\u201cGrandfather, _kutchi!_ You are as heavy as a rock and as hard as one,\ntoo,\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cHow can I dodge those stinging beasts?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s all the better for you,\u201d said the old Turtle, loosening his grip\na little; \u201ctake it easy.\u201d\n\n\u201cThey\u2019re coming! They\u2019re coming!\u201d shouted \u00c1haiy\u00fata from ahead. \u201cHurry,\nhurry, brother younger; hurry!\u201d But M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma couldn\u2019t get along any\nfaster than he could.\n\nPresently the old Turtle glanced around and saw that the people were\ngaining on them and already drawing their bows. \u201cDuck your head down and\nnever mind them. Now, you\u2019ll see what I can do!\u201d said he, pulling into\nhis shell.\n\n_Thle-e-e, thle-thle-thle-e-e_, rattled the arrows against\nold Etawa\u2019s shell, and the warriors were already shouting,\n\u201c_Ho-o-o-awiyeishikia!_\u201d--which was their cry of victory,--when\nthey began to cry out in other tones, for _tsuiya!_ their arrows\nglanced from old Turtle\u2019s shell and struck themselves, so that they\ndropped in every direction. \u201cTerror and blood! but those beings can\nshoot fast and hard!\u201d shouted they to one another, but they kept\npelting away harder and faster, only to hit one another with the\nglancing arrows.\n\n\u201cHold!\u201d cried one in advance of the others. \u201cHead them off! Head them\noff! We\u2019re only shooting ourselves against that black shield of theirs,\nand the other loosens our bow-strings.\u201d\n\nBut just then \u00c1haiy\u00fata reached the home of his other grandfather,\nAmiwili. Behold! he was all swollen up with food and could hardly\nmove--only wag his head back and forth.\n\n\u201cAre you coming?\u201d groaned the old fellow. \u201cQuick, get out of the way,\nall of you! Quick, quick!\u201d\n\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata jumped out of the way just as M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma cried out: \u201c_Ha hua!_\nI can run no farther; I must drop you, grandfather,\u201d--but he saw\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata jump to one side, so he followed, too.\n\nOld Amiwili reared himself and, opening his mouth, _waah! weeh!_ right\nand left he threw the lizard leaves he had been eating, until the\nH\u00e1wikuhkwe were blinded and suffocated by them, and, dropping their bows\nand weapons, began to clutch their eyes from blindness and pain. And old\nAmiwili coughed and coughed till he had blown nearly all his substance\naway, and there was nothing left of him but a worm no bigger than your\nmiddle finger.\n\n\u201cDrop me and make your winnings,\u201d cried the old Turtle. \u201cI guess I can\ntake care of myself,\u201d he chuckled from the inside of his shell; and it\nwas short work for the boys to cast down all their enemies whom Amiwili\nhad blown upon, and the others fled terrified toward H\u00e1wikuh.\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d laughed the two boys as they began to take off the scalps of\nthe H\u00e1wikuhkwe. \u201cThese caps are better than half a flock of Turkeys.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho\u2019ll proclaim our victory to our people?\u201d said they, suddenly\nstopping; and one would have thought they belonged to a big village and\na great tribe instead of to a lone house on top of Twin Mountain, with a\nsingle old granny in it; but then that was their way, you know.\n\n\u201cI will! I will!\u201d cried the old Turtle, as he waddled off toward Twin\nMountain and left the boys to skin scalps.\n\nWhen he came to the top of the low hill south of Master Ca\u00f1on, he stuck\na stick up in the air and shouted.\n\n\u201c_Hoo-o! Hawanawi-i-i-i!_\u201d which is the shout of victory; and, not\nseeing the old woman, he cried out two or three times.\n\n\u201c_Hoo-o! Iwolohkia-a-a!_\u201d which, as you know, means \u201cMurder! Murder!\u201d\nThe old woman heard it and was frightened. She threw an old robe over\nher shoulders, and, grabbing up the fire-poker, started down as fast as\nher limping old limbs would let her, and nearly tumbled over when she\nheard old Etawa shout again, \u201c_Iwolohkia!_\u201d\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d said she; \u201cI\u2019ll teach the shameless Turkey killers, if I am an old\nwoman;\u201d and she shook her fire-poker in the air until she came up to\nwhere the old Turtle was waiting.\n\nHere, just as she came near, the old Turtle pretended not to see her,\nbut stood up on his legs, and, holding his pole with one hand, cried\nout, \u201c_Hoo-o! Hawanawi-i-i-i!_\u201d which was the shout of victory, as I\ntold you before.\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d cried the old woman, as she limped along up and said:\n\u201c_Ah! ahi!_\u201d (\u201cMy poor old legs!\u201d)\n\n\u201cVictory!\u201d said the proud Turtle, scarcely deigning to look at her.[21]\n\n [21] The ridiculousness of the dialogue which follows may\n readily be understood when it is explained that each office in\n the celebration of victory has to be performed by a distinct\n individual of specified clans according to the function.\n\n\u201cWho has this day renewed himself?\u201d she inquired.\n\n\u201cThy grandchildren,\u201d answered the old Turtle.\n\n\u201cHave they won?\u201d asked the old woman, as she said: \u201cThanks this day!\u201d\n\n\u201cMany caps,\u201d replied the Turtle.\n\n\u201cWill they celebrate?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will purify and pass them?\u201d asked the granny.\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will bathe the scalps?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will swing the scalps round the pueblo?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will adopt them?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will bring out the feast?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be the priest of initiation?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be the song-master?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be the dancers?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will draw the arrows and sacrifice them?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will strive for the sacrificed arrows?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will lead the dance of victory?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be the dancers?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will go to get the women to join the dance?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat women will dance?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will take them to preside at the feast of their relatives-in-law?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be their relatives-in-law?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will be the priests of their Father Society?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I will.\u201d\n\nAnd they might have talked that way till sunset had not the voices of\nthe two boys, singing the song of victory, been heard coming over the\nhill. There they were, coming with two great strings of scalps as big as\na bunch of buckskins.\n\n\u201cOh! poor me! How shall I swing all those scalps round the pueblo?\u201d\ngroaned the poor old woman as she limped off to dress for the ceremony.\n\n\u201cWhy, swing them,\u201d answered the old Turtle, as he stretched himself up\nwith the importance of being master of ceremonies.\n\nSo the boys brought the scalps up and the old Turtle strung them thickly\non a long pole.\n\nSo day after day they danced and sang, to add strands to the width of\nthe boys\u2019 badges. And the old Turtle was master-priest of ceremonies and\npeople, low priest, song-master, and dancers; sacrificer of arrows and\nstriver after the arrows. He would beat the drum and sing a little, then\nrun and dance out the measure; but it was very hard work.\n\nAnd the old woman was mother of the children and sisters, and their\nclan, and somebody\u2019s else clan, matron of ceremonials, and maidens of\nceremonials--all at the same time;--but it was very hard work,\nconsequently they didn\u2019t get along very well.\n\nThat\u2019s the reason why today we have so many song-masters and singers,\ndance leaders and dancers, priests and common people, father clans and\nmother clans, in the great Ceremony of Victory.\n\nThus it happened with \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma and their old\ngrandmother, and their grandfathers the Rainbow-worm and the old Turtle.\nThat is the reason why rainbow-worms are no bigger than your finger now,\nbecause their great grandfather blew all his substance away at the\nH\u00e1wikuhkwe. That\u2019s the reason why the great Turtles in the far-away\nWaters of the World are so much bigger than their brothers and sisters\nhere, and have so many marks on their shells, where the arrows glanced\nacross the shield of their great grandfather. For old Etawa was so proud\nafter he had been the great master of ceremonies that he despised his\nold pond, and went off to seek a new home in the Western Waters of the\nWorld, and his grandchildren never grew any bigger after he went away,\nand their descendants are just as small as they were.\n\nAnd thus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Masks}]\n\n\n [Illustration: THE PINNACLES OF THUNDER MOUNTAIN\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nTHE YOUNG SWIFT-RUNNER WHO WAS STRIPPED OF HIS CLOTHING BY THE AGED\nTARANTULA\n\n\nA long, long time ago, in K\u2019i\u00e1kime, there lived a young man, the son of\nthe priest-chief of the town. It was this young man\u2019s custom to dress\nhimself as for a dance and run entirely around Thunder Mountain each\nmorning before the sun rose, before making his prayers. He was a\nhandsome young man, and his costume was beautiful to behold.\n\nNow, below the two broad columns of rock which stand at the southeastern\nend of Thunder Mountain, and which are called Ak\u2019yapaatch-ella,--below\nthese, in the base of the mountain, an old, old Tarantula had his den.\nOf a morning, as the young man in his beautiful dress sped by, the old\nTarantula heard the horn-bells which were attached to his belt and saw\nhim as he passed, this young Swift-runner, and he thought to himself:\n\u201cAh, ha! Now if I could only get his fine apparel away from him, what\nluck it would be for me! I will wait for him the next time.\u201d\n\nEarly the next morning, just as the sun peeped over the lid of the\nworld, sure enough the old Tarantula heard the horn-bells, and,\nthrusting his head out of his den, waited. As the young man approached,\nhe called out to him: \u201cHold, my young friend; come here!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat for?\u201d replied the youth. \u201cI am in a great hurry.\u201d\n\n\u201cNever mind that; come here,\u201d said the old Tarantula.\n\n\u201cWhat is it? Why do you detain me?\u201d rejoined the youth.\n\n\u201cIt is for this reason,\u201d said the old Tarantula. \u201cWouldn\u2019t you like to\nlook at yourself today?--for if you would, I can show you how.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow?\u201d asked the young man. \u201cMake haste, for I am in a hurry.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, in this way,\u201d was the reply. \u201cTake off your clothing, all of it;\nthen I will take off mine. You place yours in a heap before me; I will\nplace mine in a heap before you. Then I will put on your apparel as you\nwear it, and then you will see what a handsome fellow you are.\u201d\n\nThe young man thought about it and concluded that it would be a very\ngood thing to do. So he began drawing off his clothing--his beautiful\npainted moccasins, red and green; his fine white leggings, knitted with\ncunning stitches and fringed down the front, like the leggings worn by\nthe Master of the Dances at New Year; his delicately-embroidered skirt,\nand mantle, and coat, all of white cotton and marked with figures in\nmany colors; his heavy anklets of sacred white shell; his blue turquoise\nearrings, like the sky in blueness, and so long that they swept his\nshoulders; his plaited headband of many-colored fibers, and his bunch of\nblue, red, and yellow macaw feathers, which he wore in his hair-knot at\nthe back of his head,--all these things, one after another, he took off\nand laid before the ugly old Tarantula.\n\nThen that woolly, hairy, clammy creature hauled off his\nclothing--gray-blue, ugly, and coarse;--gray-blue leggings, gray-blue\nskirt and breech-cloth, gray-blue coat and mantle, nothing but\ngray-blue, woolly and hairy, ugly and dirty. When the old Tarantula had\ndone this, he began to put on the handsome garments that the young man\nhad placed before him, and, after he had dressed himself in these, he\nperched himself up on his crooked hindlegs, and said: \u201cLook at me, now.\nHow do I look?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, so far as the clothing is concerned, handsome,\u201d said the young\nman.\n\n\u201cJust wait till I get a little farther off,\u201d said the old Tarantula, and\nhe straightened himself up and walked backward toward the door of his\nden. Presently he stopped and stood still, and said: \u201cHow do I look\nnow?\u201d\n\n\u201cHandsomer,\u201d said the young man.\n\n\u201cJust wait till I get a little farther\u201d; and again he walked backward,\nwhich is a way Tarantulas have, and stood up straight, and said: \u201cHow do\nI look now?\u201d\n\n\u201cHandsomer still,\u201d said the young man.\n\n\u201cAh, ha! Just wait till I get a little farther\u201d;--and now he backed to\nthe very door of his den, and stood upon the lip of the entrance, and\nsaid: \u201cNow, then, how do I look?\u201d\n\n\u201cPerfectly handsome,\u201d said the young man.\n\n\u201cAh, ha!\u201d chuckled the old Tarantula, and he turned himself around and\nplunged headforemost into his hole.\n\n\u201cOut upon him!\u201d cried the young man, as he stood there with his head\nbowed, and thinking. \u201cOut upon the old rascal! That is the trick he\nserves me, is it? Fearful!\u201d said he. \u201cWhat shall I do now? I can\u2019t go\nhome naked, or half naked. Well, but I suppose I will have to,\u201d said he\nto himself. And, bending down, he reached for the hairy gray-blue\nbreech-cloth that had been left there by the old Tarantula, and the\nskirt, and put them on, and took his way swiftly homeward.\n\nWhen he reached home the sun was high, which never had happened before,\nso that the old people had been thinking, \u201cSurely, something must have\nhappened to our young man that he comes not as early as usual.\u201d And when\nhe came, they said: \u201cWhat has happened that has detained you so?\u201d\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d replied the youth; \u201cthe old Tarantula that lives under the\nAk\u2019yapaatch-ella has stripped me of my garments, and with them has run\naway into his hole.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe thought something of the kind must have happened,\u201d said his old\nfather.\n\n\u201cSend for your warrior priest,\u201d said the other old ones. \u201cLet us see\nwhat he thinks about this, and what shall be done.\u201d\n\nSo the priest-chief sent for his warrior priest, and when the latter had\ncome, he asked: \u201cWhy is it that you have sent for me?\u201d\n\n\u201cTrue, we have sent for you,\u201d said the father, \u201cbecause Old Tarantula\nhas stripped my son of his handsome apparel, which is sacred and\nprecious, and we therefore hold it a great loss to him and us. How do\nyou think we can recover what has been stolen?\u201d\n\nThe warrior priest thought a moment, and said: \u201cI should think we would\nhave to dig him out, for it isn\u2019t likely he will show himself far from\nhis den again.\u201d\n\nSo the warrior priest went out on the tops of the houses, and called to\nhis people:\n\n\u201cI instruct ye this day, oh, my people and children! Listen to my\ninstruction! Our child, in running to and from his prayers this very\nmorning was intercepted by Old Tarantula, who, through his skill and\ncunning, succeeded in stripping our child of his handsome apparel.\nTherefore, I instruct ye, make haste! Gather together digging-sticks and\nhoes; let us all go and dig out the old villain; let the whole town turn\nout, women as well as men and children. My daughters, ye women of this\ntown, take with ye basket-bowls and baskets and other things wherewith\nye gather material for plaster, with which to convey away the sand and\nearth that is dug up by the men. Thus much I instruct ye! Make haste\nall!\u201d Whereupon he descended, and, after eating, led the way toward the\nden of Old Tarantula.\n\nWhen the people had also eaten and followed, they began to work swiftly\nat tunnelling into the hole of the Tarantula; and thus they worked and\nworked from morning till night, but did not overtake him, until at last\nthey reached the solid rock foundations of the mountain. They had filled\ntheir baskets and basket-bowls with the sand, and cast it behind them,\nand others had cast it behind them, and so on until a large hillock of\nearth and sand had been raised, but still they had not overtaken Old\nTarantula. Now, when they had reached the solid rock foundations of the\nmountain, they saw that the hole yawned like a cave before them, and\nthat it was needless to follow farther. They gave up in despair, saying:\n\u201cWhat more can we do? Let us go home. Let us give it up, since we must.\u201d\nAnd they took their ways homeward.\n\nNow, in the evening the old ones of the town were very thoughtful, and\nthey gathered together and talked the matter over, and finally it was\nsuggested by someone in answer to the query, \u201cWhat can we do to recover\nour son\u2019s lost garments?\u201d \u201cSuppose that we send for the Great\nKingfisher? He is wise, crafty, swift of flight; he dashes himself from\non high, even into the water, and takes him therefrom whatsoever he\nwill, swift though it be, without fail. Suppose we send for him, our\ngrandfather?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, ha! that\u2019s it,\u201d replied others. \u201cSend for him straightway.\u201d\n\nSo the master warrior priest called to Young Swift-runner, and sent him\nto the Hill of the Great Kingfisher.\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d asked Kingfisher, when he heard someone at the entrance of\nhis house.\n\n\u201cCome quickly! In council the old ones of our town await you,\u201d said the\nyoung man.\n\nSo Great Kingfisher followed, and, arriving at the council, greeted them\nand asked: \u201cWhat is it you would have of me?\u201d\n\nSaid they: \u201cOld Tarantula has stripped our young man, Swift-runner, of\nhis beautiful garments, and how to recover them we know not. We have dug\naway the den, even to the foundation of the mountain, but beyond this it\nextends. What to do we know not. So we have sent for you, knowing your\npower and ability to quickly snatch even from under the waters\nwhatsoever you will.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, ha! I will take a step toward this thing,\u201d said Great Kingfisher,\n\u201cbut it is a difficult task you place before me. Old Tarantula is\nexceedingly cunning and very keen of sight, moreover. I will, however,\ntake a step, and if I have good luck will be able to bring back to you\nsomething of what he has stolen.\u201d He then made his adieu, and went back\nto his house at the Hill of the Kingfisher.\n\nVery early the next morning he took his swift way to the\nAk\u2019yapaatch-ella, and there where the columns of rock fork he lay\nhimself down between them, like a little finger between two other\nfingers, merely thrusting his beak over the edge, and looking at the\nopening of Old Tarantula\u2019s hole.\n\nThe plumes of sunlight were but barely gleaming on the farther edge of\nthe world when Old Tarantula cast his eyes just out of the edge of his\nhole, and looked all around. Eyes like many eyes had he, wonderfully\nsharp and clear. With these he looked all around, as might have been\nexpected. He discovered Great Kingfisher, little-so-ever of him showing,\nand called out: \u201c_Heee! W\u00f3loi weee!_\u201d (\u201cHo, ho! skulker skulking. Ho,\nho! skulker skulking!\u201d) Instantly Great Kingfisher shook out his wings,\nand _thluooo_, descended like a breath of strong wind; and\n_thlu-u-u-kwa_, finished his flight like a loosed arrow; but he merely\nbrushed the tips of the plumes in Old Tarantula\u2019s head-knot, and the\ncreature doubled himself up and headforemost plunged into his hole. Once\nin, \u201cHa, ha!\u201d said he. \u201cGood for him! Good! Good! Let\u2019s have a dance,\nand sing,\u201d said he, talking to himself; and thereupon he pranced up,\njigged about his dark, deep room, singing this song:\n\n \u201c_Ohatchik\u2019ya ti T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n T\u00e1kw\u00e0, T\u00e1kw\u00e0!_\u201d\n\nThus singing, he danced,--surely a song that nobody but he could dance\nto, if it be a song, but he danced to it. And when he had finished\njigging about, he looked at his fluttering garments, and said: \u201cHa, ha!\nJust look at my fine dress! Now am I not handsome? I tell you I am\nhandsome! Now, let\u2019s have another dance!\u201d And again he sang at the top\nof his wheezing voice, and pranced round on his crooked hind legs, with\nhis fine garments fluttering.\n\nBut Great Kingfisher, with wings drooping and beak gaped down at the\ncorners,--as though being hungry he had tried to catch a fish and hadn\u2019t\ncaught him,--took his way back to the council; and he said to the people\nthere: \u201cNo use! I failed utterly. As I said before, he is a crafty,\nkeen-sighted old fellow. What more have I to say?\u201d He made his adieus,\nand took his way back to the Hill of the Kingfisher.\n\nAgain the people talked with one another and considered; and at last\nsaid some: \u201cInasmuch as he has failed, let us send for our grandfather,\nGreat Eagle. He, of all living creatures with wings, is swiftest and\nkeenest of sight, strong of grasp, hooked of beak, whatever getting\nholding, and getting whatever he will.\u201d\n\nThey sent for the Eagle. He came, and when made acquainted with their\nwishes turned quickly, and said, in bidding them adieu: \u201cI think that\npossibly I can succeed, though surely, as my brother has said, Old\nTarantula is a crafty, keen-sighted creature. I will do my best.\u201d\n\nEarly the next morning he took his way, before sunrise, to the peak of\nthe Mountain of the Badgers, a long distance away from Ak\u2019yapaatch-ella,\nbut still as no distance to the Eagle. There he stood, with his head\nraised to the winds, turning first one eye, then the other, on the\nentrance of Old Tarantula\u2019s den, until Old Tarantula again thrust out\nhis woolly nose, as might have been expected. He discovered the Eagle,\nand was just shouting \u201cHo, skulker, skulking!\u201d when the Eagle swept like\na singing stone loosed from the sling straight at the head of Old\nTarantula. But his wings hissed and buzzed past the hole harmlessly, and\nhis crooked talons reached down into the dark, clutching nothing save\none of the plumes in Old Tarantula\u2019s head-dress. Even this he failed to\nbring away.\n\nThe Old Tarantula tumbled headlong into his lower room, and exclaimed:\n\u201cHa, ha! Goodness save us! What a startling he gave me! But he didn\u2019t\nget me! No, he didn\u2019t get me! Let\u2019s have a dance! Jig it down! What a\nfine fellow I am!\u201d And he began to prance about, and jig and sing as he\nhad sung before:\n\n \u201c_Ohatchik\u2019ya ti T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n T\u00e1kw\u00e0, T\u00e1kw\u00e0!_\u201d\n\nAs soon as he paused for breath, he glanced askance at his fluttering\nbright garments and cried out: \u201cHo! what a handsome fellow I am! How\nfinely dressed I am! Let\u2019s have another dance!\u201d And again he danced and\nsang, all by himself, admiring himself, answering his own questions, and\nwatching his own movements. But Great Eagle, crestfallen and\nshame-smitten, took his way to the place of the council, reported his\nfailure, and made his adieu.\n\nThen again the people considered, and the old ones decided to send for\nHatchutsanona (the Lesser Falcon), whose plumage is hard and smooth and\nspeckled, gray and brown, like the rocks and sagebrush, and who, being\nswift as the Kingfisher, and strong as the Eagle, and small, is not only\nable to fly where other birds fly, but can penetrate the closest thicket\nwhen seeking his prey, for trimmed he is like a well-feathered arrow.\nThey sent for him; he came and, being made acquainted with the facts of\nthe case, said he could but try, though he modestly affirmed that when\nhis elder brothers, Great Kingfisher and Great Eagle, had made such\nefforts, it were well-nigh needless for him to try, and repeated what\nthey had said of the cunning and keenness of sight of Old Tarantula.\n\nBut he went early the next morning, and placed himself on the very edge\nof the high cliff overhanging the columns of rock and looking into the\nden of Old Tarantula. There, when the sun rose, you could scarcely have\nseen him, even though near you might have been, for his coat of gray and\nbrown was like the rocks and dry grass around him, and he lay very close\nto the ground, like an autumn leaf beaten down by the rain. By-and-by\nOld Tarantula thrust out his rugged face, and turned his eyes in every\ndirection, up and down; then twisted his head from side to side. He saw\nnothing. He had even poked his head entirely out of his hole, and his\nshoulders were just visible, when Lesser Falcon bestirred himself, and\nOld Tarantula, alas! saw him; not in time to wholly save himself,\nhowever, for Lesser Falcon, with a sweep of his wings like the swirl of\na snowdrift, shot into the mouth of Old Tarantula\u2019s den, grasped at his\nhead, and brought away with him the macaw plumes of the youth\u2019s\nhead-dress.\n\nDown into his den tumbled Old Tarantula, and he sat down and bent\nhimself double with fright and chagrin. He wagged his head to and fro,\nand sighed: \u201cAlas! alas! my beautiful head-dress; the skulking wretch!\nMy beautiful head-dress; he has taken it from me. What is the use of\nbothering about a miserable bunch of macaw feathers, anyway? They get\ndirty, they get bent and broken, moths eat them, they change their\ncolor; what is the use of troubling myself about a worthless thing like\nthat? Haven\u2019t I still the finest costume in the valley?--handsome\nleggings and embroidered skirt and mantle, sleeves as pretty as flowers\nin summer, necklaces worth fifty head-plumes, and earrings worth a\nhandful of such necklaces? Ha, ha! let him away with the old\nhead-plumes! Let\u2019s have a dance, and dance her down, old fellow!\u201d said\nhe, talking to himself. And again he skipped about, and sang his\ntuneless song:\n\n \u201c_Ohatchik\u2019ya ti T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ohatchik\u2019ya lii T\u00e1kw\u00e0!\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0,\n Ai yaa T\u00e1kw\u00e0.\n T\u00e1kw\u00e0, T\u00e1kw\u00e0!_\u201d\n\nHe admired himself as much as before. \u201cForsooth,\u201d said he; \u201cI could not\nhave seen the head-plume for I would have worn it in the back of my\nhead.\u201d\n\nThe Lesser Falcon, cursing at his half-luck, took his way back to the\ncouncil, and, casting the head-plume at the feet of the old men, said:\n\u201cAlas! my fathers; this is the best I could do, for before I had fairly\ntaken my flight, Old Tarantula discovered me and made into his den. But\nthis I got, and I bring it to you. May others succeed better!\u201d\n\n\u201cThou hast succeeded exceeding well, for most precious are these plumes\nfrom Summerland,\u201d said the old priest. \u201cThanks be to you, this day, my\ngrandfather!\u201d And the Lesser Falcon took his way to the thickets and\nhillsides.\n\nThen the people said to one another: \u201cWhat more is there to be done? We\nmust even have recourse to the Gods, it seems.\u201d And they called\nSwift-runner and said to him: \u201cOf the feathered creatures we have chosen\nthe wisest and swiftest and strongest to aid us; yet they have failed\nmainly. Therefore, we would even send you to the Gods, for your\nperformance of duty to them has been faithful from morning to morning.\u201d\nSo they instructed him to climb to the top of Thunder Mountain and visit\nthe home of the two War-gods, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, for in those days\nthey still dwelt on the top of Thunder Mountain with their old\ngrandmother, at the Middle Place of Sacrifice.\n\nThe priests in the town prepared sacrificial plumes and divided their\ntreasures for the Gods, and again calling the young man, presented them\nto him as their messenger, bidding him bear to the Gods their greetings.\n\nOn the morning following, he climbed the steep path and soon neared the\ndwelling of the Gods and their grandmother. She was on the roof of the\nhouse, while the two bad boys--always out of the way when wanted, and\nnever ceasing to play their pranks, as was their little way, you\nknow--were down in the lower rooms. The old grandmother bade the youth\nto enter, and called out to her grandchildren, the two Gods: \u201cMy\nchildren, come up, both of you, quickly. A young man has arrived to see\nyou, bringing greetings.\u201d So they cast off their playful behavior, and\nwith great gravity came into the room, and looking up to the tall youth,\nsaid: \u201cThou hast come. May it be happily. Sit down. What is it that thou\nwouldst have? because for nothing no stranger comes to the house of\nanother.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is true, this which you say,\u201d said the youth reverently, breathing\non his hands. \u201cO ye, my fathers! I bring greetings from the fathers of\nmy town below the mountain, and offerings from them.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well thus, my child,\u201d replied the Gods.\n\n\u201cAnd I bring also my burden of trouble, that I may listen to your\ncounsel, and perchance implore your aid,\u201d said the youth.\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d said the Two; and they listened.\n\nThen the youth related his misfortune, telling how he had been stripped\nof his clothing by Old Tarantula; how the old ones, gathered in council,\nhad sought the aid, one after another, of the wisest and swiftest of\nfeathered beings, but with little success; how they had at last\ncounselled his coming to them, the fathers of the people in times of\ndifficulty and strife.\n\n\u201cGrandmother!\u201d shouted the younger brother War-god. \u201cMake haste! Make\nhaste, grandmother! Bestir yourself! Grind flour for us. Let it be rock\nflour!\u201d\n\nThe old grandmother gathered some white calcareous sandstone called\n_k\u00e9tch\u00efpawe_. She broke those rocks into fragments and ground them into\nmeal; then reduced them on a finer stone to soft, impalpable powder. She\nmade dough of this with water, and the two Gods, with wonderful skill,\nmolded this dough, as it hardened, into figures of elk-kind,--two deer\nand two antelope images they made. When they had finished these, they\nplaced them before the youth, and said: \u201cTake these and stand them on\nthe sacrificial rock-shelf or terrace on the southern side of our\nmountain, with prayer to the gods over them. Return to your home, and\ntell the old ones what we have directed you to do. Tell them also where\nwe said you should place these beings, for such they will become upon\nthe rock-shelf; and you should go to greet them in the morning and guide\nthem with you toward the den of Old Tarantula,--Old Tarantula is very\nfond of hunting; nothing is so pleasing to him as to kill\nanything,--that thereby he may be tempted forth from his hiding-place in\nhis den.\u201d\n\nThe youth did as he was directed, and when he had placed the figures of\nthe deer and the antelope in a row on the shelf, and reached home, he\ninformed the old ones of the word that had been sent to them.\n\nHis father, the old priest-chief, called the warrior priest, and said to\nhim: \u201cIt may be possible that Old Tarantula will be tempted forth from\nhis den tomorrow. Would it not be well for us to take the war-path\nagainst him?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt would, indeed, be well,\u201d said the warrior priest. And the\npriest-chief went to the house-top and called to the people, saying:\n\n\u201cO, ye, my people and children, I instruct ye today! Let the young men\nand the warriors gather and prepare as for war. By means of the sacred\nimages which have been made by the Two Beloved for our son,\nSwift-runner, it may be that we shall succeed in tempting Old Tarantula\nforth from his den tomorrow. Let us be prepared to capture him. Make\nhaste! Make ready! Thus much I instruct ye.\u201d\n\nIn great haste, as if under the influence of joyful tidings indeed, the\npeople prepared for war, gathered together in great numbers, testing the\nstrength of their bows, and with much racket issued forth from the town\nunder Thunder Mountain, spreading over all the foot-hills. And toward\ndaylight the youth alone took his way toward the sacrificial rock-shelf\non the side of the mountain. When he arrived there, behold! the two\nAntelopes and the two Deer were tamely walking about, cropping the grass\nand tender leaves, and as he approached, they said: \u201cSo, here you are.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, this day, behold, my children!\u201d said he in his prayer. \u201cEven for\nthe reason that we have made ye beings, follow my instructions, oh, do!\nMost wickedly and shamefully has Old Tarantula, living below\nAk\u2019yapaatch-ella, robbed me of my sacred fine apparel. I therefore call\nye to aid me. Go ye now toward his home, that he may be tempted forth by\nthe sight of ye.\u201d\n\nObediently the Deer and Antelope took their way down the sloping sides\nof the foot-hills toward Old Tarantula\u2019s den. As they neared the den the\nyouth called out from one of the valleys below, \u201c_Hu-u-u-u-u-u!_ Hasten!\nThere go some deer and antelope! Whoever may be near them, understand,\nthere go some deer and antelope!\u201d\n\nOld Tarantula was talking to himself, as usual, down in his inner room.\nHe heard the faint sound. \u201cHa!\u201d cried he, \u201cwhat is this humming?\nSomebody calling, no doubt.\u201d He skipped out toward the doorway just as\nthe young man called the second time. \u201cAh, ha!\u201d said he. \u201cHe says deer\nare coming, doesn\u2019t he? Let us see.\u201d And presently, when the young man\ncalled the third time, he exclaimed: \u201cThat\u2019s it! that is what he is\ncalling out. Now for a hunt! I might as well get them as anyone else.\u201d\n\nHe caught up his bow, slipped the noose over the head of it, twanged\nthe string, and started. But just as he was going out of his hole, he\nsaid to himself: \u201cGood daylight! this never will do; they will be after\nme if I go out. Oh, pshaw! Nonsense! they will do nothing of the kind.\nWhat does it matter? Haven\u2019t I bow and arrows with me?\u201d He leaped out of\nhis hole and started off toward the Deer. As he gained an eminence, he\ncried: \u201cAh, ha! sure enough, there they come!\u201d Indeed, he was telling\nthe truth. The Deer still approached, and when the first one came near\nhe drew an arrow strongly and let fly. One of them dropped at once. \u201cAh,\nha!\u201d cried he, \u201cwho says I am not a good hunter?\u201d He whipped out another\narrow, and fired at the second Deer, which dropped where it had stood.\nWith more exclamations of delight, he shot at the Antelope following,\nwhich fell; and then at the last one, which fell as the others had.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said he, \u201cI suppose I might as well take my meat home. Fine game\nI have bagged today.\u201d He untied the strap which he had brought along and\ntied together the legs of the first deer he had shot. He stooped down,\nraised the deer, knelt on the ground and drew the strap over his\nforehead, and was just about to rise with his burden and make off for\nhis den when, _klo-o-o-o-o!_ he fell down almost crushed under a mass of\nwhite rock. \u201cGoodness! what\u2019s this? Mercy, but this is startling!\u201d He\nlooked around, but he saw nothing of his game save a shapeless mass of\nwhite rock. \u201cWell, I will try this other one,\u201d said he to himself. He\nhad no sooner placed the other on his back than down it bore him,\nanother mass of white rock! \u201cWhat can be the matter? The devil must be\nto pay!\u201d said he. Then he tried the next, with no better success. \u201cWell,\nthere is one left, anyway,\u201d said he. He tied the feet of the last one\ntogether, and was about to place the strap over his forehead, when he\nheard a mighty and thundering tread and great shouting and a terrible\nnoise altogether, for the people were already gathering about his den.\nHe made for the mouth of it with all possible speed, but the people were\nthere before him; they closed in upon him, they clutched at his stolen\ngarments, they pulled his earrings out of his ears, slitting his ears in\ndoing so, until he put up his hands and cried: \u201cDeath and ashes! Mercy!\nMercy! You hurt! You hurt! Don\u2019t treat me so! I\u2019ll be good hereafter.\nI\u2019ll take the clothing off and give it back to you without making the\nslightest trouble, if you will let me alone.\u201d But the people closed in\nstill more angrily, and pulled him about, buffeted him, tore his\nclothing from him, until he was left nude and bruised and so maimed that\nhe could hardly move.\n\nThen the old priests gathered around, and said one of them: \u201cIt will not\nbe well if we let this beast go as he is; he is too large, too powerful,\nand too crafty. He has but to think of destruction; forsooth, he\ndestroys. He has but to think of over-reaching; it is accomplished. It\nwill not be well that he should go abroad thus. He must be roasted; and\nthus only can we rid the world of him as he is.\u201d\n\nSo the people assembled and heaped up great quantities of dry firewood;\nand they drilled fire from a stick, and lighted the mass. Then they cast\nthe struggling Tarantula amid the flames, and he squeaked and sizzled\nand hissed, and swelled and swelled and swelled, until, with a terrific\nnoise, he burst, and the fragments of his carcass were cast to the\nuttermost parts of the earth. These parts again took shape as beings not\nunlike Old Tarantula himself.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. And therefore today, though\ncrooked are the legs of the tarantula, and his habit of progress\nbackward, still he is distributed throughout the great world. Only he is\nvery, very much smaller than was the Great Tarantula who lived below the\ntwo rocky columns of Thunder Mountain.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\n\u00c1TAHSAIA, THE CANNIBAL DEMON\n\n\nIn the days of the ancients, when the children of our forefathers lived\nin H\u00e9shokta (\u201cTown of the Cliffs\u201d), there also lived two beautiful\nmaidens, elder and younger, sisters one to the other, daughters of a\nmaster-chief.\n\nOne bright morning in summer-time, the elder sister called to the\nyounger, \u201c_H\u00e1ni!_\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat sayest thou?\u201d said the _h\u00e1ni_.\n\n\u201cThe day is bright and the water is warm. Let us go down to the pool and\nwash our clothes, that we may wear them as if new at the dance to come.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, yes, sister elder,\u201d said the _h\u00e1ni_; \u201cbut these are days when they\nsay the shadows of the rocks and even the sage-bushes lodge unthinkable\nthings, and cause those who walk alone to breathe hard with fear.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Shtchu!_\u201d exclaimed the elder sister derisively. \u201cYounger sisters\nalways are as timid as younger brothers are bad-tempered.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, well, then; as you will, sister elder. I will not quarrel with your\nwish, but I fear to go.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Yaush!_ Come along, then,\u201d said the elder sister; whereupon they\ngathered their cotton mantles and other garments into bundles, and,\ntaking along a bag of yucca-root, or soap-weed, started together down\nthe steep, crooked path to where the pool lay at the foot of the great\nmesa.\n\nNow, far above the Town of the Cliffs, among the rocks of red-gray and\nyellow--red in the form of a bowlder-like mountain that looks like a\nfrozen sand-bank--there is a deep cave. You have never seen it? Well! to\nthis day it is called the \u201cCave of \u00c1tahsaia,\u201d and there, in the times I\ntell of, lived \u00c1tahsaia himself. Uhh! what an ugly demon he was! His\nbody was as big as the biggest elk\u2019s, and his breast was shaggy with\nhair as stiff as porcupine-quills. His legs and arms were long and\nbrawny,--all covered with speckled scales of black and white. His hair\nwas coarse and snarly as a buffalo\u2019s mane, and his eyes were so big and\nglaring that they popped out of his head like skinned onions. His mouth\nstretched from one cheek to the other and was filled with crooked fangs\nas yellow as thrown-away deer-bones. His lips were as red and puffy as\npeppers, and his face as wrinkled and rough as a piece of burnt\nbuckskin. That was \u00c1tahsaia, who in the days of the ancients devoured\nmen and women for his meat, and the children of men for his sweet-bread.\nHis weapons were terrible, too. His finger-nails were as long as the\nclaws of a bear, and in his left hand he carried a bow made of the\nsapling of a mountain-oak, with two arrows ready drawn for use. And he\nwas never seen without his great flint knife, as broad as a man\u2019s thigh\nand twice as long, which he brandished with his right hand and poked his\nhair back with, so that his grizzly fore-locks were covered with the\nblood of those he had slaughtered. He wore over his shoulders whole\nskins of the mountain lion and bear clasped with buttons of wood.\n\nNow, although \u00c1tahsaia was ugly and could not speak without chattering\nhis teeth, or laugh without barking like a wolf, he was a very polite\ndemon. But, like many ugly and polite people nowadays, he was a great\nliar.\n\n\u00c1tahsaia that morning woke up and stuck his head out of his hole just as\nthe two maidens went down to the spring. He caught sight of them while\nhis eyes travelled below, and he chuckled. Then he muttered, as he gazed\nat them and saw how young and fine they were: \u201c_Ahhali! Yaa-tchi!_\u201d\n(\u201cGood lunch! Two for a munch!\u201d) and howled his war-cry,\n\u201c_Ho-o-o-thlai-a!_\u201d till Teshaminkia, the Echo-god, shouted it to the\nmaidens.\n\n\u201cOh!\u201d exclaimed the _h\u00e1ni_, clutching the arm of her elder sister;\n\u201clisten!\u201d\n\n\u201c_Ho-o-o-thlai-a!_\u201d again roared the demon, and again Teshaminkia.\n\n\u201cOh, oh! sister elder, what did I tell you! Why did we come out today!\u201d\nand both ran away; then stopped to listen. When they heard nothing more,\nthey returned to the spring and went to washing their clothes on some\nflat stones.\n\nBut \u00c1tahsaia grabbed up his weapons and began to clamber down the\nmountain, muttering and chuckling to himself as he went: \u201c_Ahhali!\nYaa-tchi!_\u201d (\u201cGood lunch! Two for a munch!\u201d).\n\nAround the corner of Great Mesa, on the high shelves of which stands the\nTown of the Cliffs, are two towering buttes called Kwilli-yallon (Twin\nMountain). Far up on the top of this mountain there dwelt \u00c1haiy\u00fata and\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma.\n\nYou don\u2019t know who \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma were? Well, I will tell you.\nThey were the twin children of the Sun-father and the Mother Waters of\nthe World. Before men were born to the light, the Sun made love to the\nWaters of the World, and under his warm, bright glances, there were\nhatched out of a foam-cup on the face of the Great Ocean, which then\ncovered the earth, two wonderful boys, whom men afterward named _Ua nam\nAtch P\u00edahk\u2019oa_ (\u201cThe Beloved Two who Fell\u201d). The Sun dried away the\nwaters from the high-lands of earth and these Two then delivered men\nforth from the bowels of our Earth-mother, and guided them eastward\ntoward the home of their father, the Sun. The time came, alas! when war\nand many strange beings arose to destroy the children of earth, and then\nthe eight Stern Beings changed the hearts of the twins to _sawanikia_,\nor the medicine of war. Thenceforth they were known as \u00c1haiy\u00fata and\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma (\u201cOur Beloved,\u201d the \u201cTerrible Two,\u201d \u201cBoy-gods of War\u201d).\n\nEven though changed, they still guarded our ancients and guided them to\nthe Middle of the World, where we now live. Gifted with hearts of the\nmedicine of war, and with wisdom almost as great as the Sun-father\u2019s\nown, they became the invincible guardians of the Corn-people of Earth,\nand, with the rainbow for their weapon and thunderbolts for their\narrows,--swift lightning-shafts pointed with turquoise,--were the\ngreatest warriors of all in the days of the new. When at last they had\nconquered most of the enemies of men, they taught to a chosen few of\ntheir followers the songs, prayers, and orders of a society of warriors\nwho should be called their children, the Priests[22] of the Bow, and\nselecting from among them the two wisest, breathed into their nostrils\n(as they have since breathed into those of their successors) the\n_sawanikia_. Since then we make anew the semblance of their being and\nplace them each year at mid-sun on the top of the Mountain of Thunder,\nand on the top of the Mountain of the Beloved, that they may know we\nremember them and that they may guard (as it was said in the days of the\nancients they would guard) the Land of Zu\u00f1i from sunrise to sunset and\ncut off the pathways of the enemy.\n\n [22] Here and hereafter I use this term _priest_ reluctantly, in\n lack of a better word, but in accordance with Webster\u2019s second\n definition.--F. H. C.\n\nWell, \u00c1haiy\u00fata, who is called the elder brother, and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, who is\ncalled the younger, were living on the top of Twin Mountain with their\nold grandmother.\n\nSaid the elder to the younger on this same morning: \u201cBrother, let us go\nout and hunt. It is a fine day. What say you?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy face is in front of me,\u201d said the younger, \u201cand under a roof is no\nplace for men,\u201d he added, as he put on his helmet of elk-hide and took a\nquiver of mountain-lion skin from an antler near the ladder.\n\n\u201cWhere are you two boys going now?\u201d shrieked the grandmother through a\ntrap-door from below. \u201cDon\u2019t you ever intend to stop worrying me by\ngoing abroad when even the spaces breed fear like thick war?\u201d\n\n\u201cO grandmother,\u201d they laughed, as they tightened their bows and\nstraightened their arrows before the fire, \u201cnever mind us; we are only\ngoing out for a hunt,\u201d and before the old woman could climb up to stop\nthem they were gaily skipping down the rocks toward the cliffs below.\n\nSuddenly the younger brother stopped. \u201cAhh!\u201d said he, \u201clisten, brother!\nIt is the cry of \u00c1tahsaia, and the old wretch is surely abroad to cause\ntears!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied the elder. \u201cIt is \u00c1tahsaia, and we must stop him! Come\non, come on; quick!\u201d\n\n\u201cHold, brother, hold! Stiffen your feet right here with patience. He is\nafter the two maidens of H\u00e9shokta! I saw them going to the spring as I\ncame down. This day he must die. Is your face to the front?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is; come on,\u201d said the elder brother, starting forward.\n\n\u201cStiffen your feet with patience, I say,\u201d again exclaimed the younger\nbrother. \u201cKnow you that the old demon comes up the pathway below here?\nHe will not hurt them until he gets them home. You know he is a great\nliar, and a great flatterer; that is the way the old beast catches\npeople. Now, if we wait here we will surely see them when they come up.\u201d\n\nSo, after quarrelling a little, the elder brother consented to sit down\non a rock which overlooked the pathway and was within bow-shot of the\nold demon\u2019s cave.\n\nNow, while the girls were washing, \u00c1tahsaia ran as fast as his old\njoints would let him until the two girls heard his mutterings and\nrattling weapons.\n\n\u201cSomething is coming, sister!\u201d cried the younger, and both ran toward\nthe rocks to hide again, but they were too late. The old demon strode\naround by another way and suddenly, at a turn, came face to face with\nthem, glaring with his bloodshot eyes and waving his great jagged flint\nknife. But as he neared them he lowered the knife and smiled,\nstraightening himself up and approaching the frightened ones as gently\nas would a young man.\n\nThe poor younger sister clung to the elder one, and sank moaning by her\nside, for the smile of \u00c1tahsaia was as fearful as the scowl of a\ntriumphant enemy, or the laugh of a rattlesnake when he hears any old\nman tell a lie and thinks he will poison him for it.\n\n\u201cWhy do you run, and why do you weep so?\u201d asked the old demon. \u201cI know\nyou. I am ugly and old, my pretty maidens, but I am your grandfather and\nmean you no harm at all. I frightened you only because I felt certain\nyou would run away from me if you could.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d faltered the elder sister, immediately getting over her fright.\n\u201cWe did not know you and therefore we were frightened by you. Come,\nsister, come,\u201d said she to the younger. \u201cBrighten your eyes and\nthoughts, for our grandfather will not hurt us. Don\u2019t you see?\u201d\n\nBut the younger sister only shook her head and sobbed. Then the demon\ngot angry. \u201cWhat are you blubbering about?\u201d he roared, raising his\nknife and sweeping it wildly through the air. \u201cDo you see this knife?\nThis day I will cut off the light of your life with it if you do not\nswallow your whimpers!\u201d\n\n\u201cGet up, oh, do get up, _h\u00e1ni_!\u201d whispered the elder sister, now again\nfrightened herself. \u201cSurely he will not cut us off just now, if we obey\nhim; and is it not well that even for a little time the light of life\nshine--though it shine through fear and sadness--than be cut off\naltogether? For who knows where the trails tend that lead through the\ndarkness of the night of death?\u201d\n\nYou know, in the speech of the rulers of the world and of our\nancients,[23] a man\u2019s light was cut off when his life was taken, and\nwhen he died he came to the dividing-place of life.\n\n [23] One of the figures of speech meaning the gods.\n\nThe _h\u00e1ni_ tried to rally herself and rose to her feet, but she still\ntrembled.\n\n\u201cNow, my pretty maidens, my own granddaughters, even,\u201d said the old\ndemon once more, as gently as at first, \u201cI am most glad I found you. How\ngood are the gods! for I am a poor, lone old man. All my people are\ngone.\u201d (Here he sighed like the hiss of a wild-cat.) \u201cYonder above is my\nhome\u201d (pointing over his shoulder), \u201cand as I am a great hunter, plenty\nof venison is baking in my rear room and more sweet-bread than I can\neat. Lo! it makes me homesick to eat alone, and when I saw you and saw\nhow pretty and gentle you were, I thought that it might be you would\nthrow the light of your favor on me, and go up to my house to share of\nmy abundance and drink from my vessels. Besides, I am so old that only\nnow and then can I get a full jar of water up to my house. So I came as\nfast as I could to ask you to return and eat with me.\u201d\n\nReassured by his kind speech, the elder sister hastened to say: \u201cOf\ncourse, we will go with our grandfather, and if that is all he may want\nof us, we can soon fill his water-jars, can\u2019t we, _h\u00e1ni_?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are a good girl,\u201d said the old demon to the one who had spoken;\nthen, glaring at the younger sister: \u201cBring that fool along with you and\ncome up; she will not come by herself; she has more bashfulness than\nsense, and less sense than my knife, because that makes the world more\nwise by killing off fools.\u201d\n\nHe led the way and the elder sister followed, dragging along the\nshrinking _h\u00e1ni_.\n\nThe old demon kept talking in a loud voice as they went up the pathway,\ntelling all sorts of entertaining stories, until, as they neared the\nrocks where \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma were waiting, the Two heard him and\nsaid to one another: \u201cAhh, they come!\u201d\n\nThen the elder brother jumped up and began to tighten his bow, but the\nyounger brother muttered: \u201cSit down, won\u2019t you, you fool! \u00c1tahsaia\u2019s\nears are like bat-ears, only bigger. Wait now, till I say ready. You\nknow he will not hurt the girls until he gets them out from his house.\nLook over there in front of his hole. Do you see the flat place that\nleads along to that deep chasm beyond?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied the elder brother. \u201cBut what of that?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat but that there he cuts the throats of his captives and casts their\nbones and heads into the depths of the chasm! Do you see the notch in\nthe stone? That\u2019s where he lets their blood flow down, and for that\nreason no one ever discovers his tracks. Now, stiffen your feet with\npatience, I say, and we will see what to do when the time comes.\u201d\n\nAgain they sat and waited. As the old demon and the girls passed along\nbelow, the elder brother again started and would have shot had not\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma held him back. \u201cYou fool of a brother elder, but not wiser.\nNo! Do you not know that your arrow is lightning and will kill the\nmaidens as well as the monster?\u201d\n\nFinally, the demon reached the entrance to his cave, and, going in,\nasked the girls to follow him, laying out two slabs for them to sit on.\n\u201cNow, sit down, my pretty girls, and I will soon get something for you\nto eat. You must be hungry.\u201d Going to the rear of the cave, he broke\nopen a stone oven, and the steam which arose was certainly delicious and\nmeaty. Soon he brought out two great bowls, big enough to feed a whole\ndance. One contained meat, the other a mess resembling sweet-bread\npudding. \u201cNow, let us eat,\u201d said the demon, seating himself opposite,\nand at once diving his horny fingers and scaly hand half up to the\nwrist in the meat-broth. The elder sister began to take bits of the food\nto eat it, when the younger made a motion to her, and showed her with\nhorror the bones of a little hand. The sweet-bread was the flesh and\nbones of little children. Then the two girls only pretended to eat,\ntaking the food out and throwing it down by the side of the bowls.\n\n\u201cWhy don\u2019t you eat?\u201d demanded the demon, cramming at the same time a\nhuge mouthful of the meat, bones and all, into his wide throat.\n\n\u201cWe are eating,\u201d said one of the girls.\n\n\u201cThen why do you throw my food away?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are throwing away only the bones.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, the bones are the better part,\u201d retorted the demon, taking\nanother huge mouthful, by way of example, big enough to make a grown\nman\u2019s meal. \u201cOh, yes!\u201d he added; \u201cI forgot that you had baby teeth.\u201d\n\nAfter the meal was finished, the old demon said: \u201cLet us go out and sit\ndown in the sun on my terrace. Perhaps, my pretty maidens, you will comb\nan old man\u2019s hair, for I have no one left to help me now,\u201d he sighed,\npretending to be very sad. So, showing the girls where to sit down,\nwithout waiting for their assent he settled himself in front of them and\nleaned his head back to have it combed. The two maidens dared not\ndisobey; and now and then they pulled at a long, coarse hair, and then\nsnapped their fingers close to his scalp, which so deceived the old\ndemon that he grunted with satisfaction every time. At last their knees\nwere so tired by his weight upon them that they said they were done,\nand \u00c1tahsaia, rising, pretended to be greatly pleased, and thanked them\nover and over. Then he told them to sit down in front of him, and he\nwould comb their hair as they had combed his, but not to mind if he hurt\na little for his fingers were old and stiff. The two girls again dared\nnot disobey, and sat down as he had directed. Uhh! how the old beast\ngrinned and glared and breathed softly between his teeth.\n\nThe two brothers had carefully watched everything, the elder one\nstarting up now and then, the younger remaining quiet. Suddenly\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma sprang up. He caught the shield the Sun-father had given\nhim,--the shield which, though made only of nets and knotted cords,\nwould ward off alike the weapons of the warrior or the magic of the\nwizard. Holding it aloft, he cried to \u00c1haiy\u00fata: \u201cStand ready; the time\nis come! If I miss him, pierce him with your arrow. Now, then--\u201d\n\nHe hurled the shield through the air. Swiftly as a hawk and noiselessly\nas an owl, it sailed straight over the heads of the maidens and settled\nbetween them and the demon\u2019s face. The shield was invisible, and the old\ndemon knew not it was there. He leaned over as if to examine the\nmaidens\u2019 heads. He opened his great mouth, and, bending yet nearer, made\na vicious bite at the elder one.\n\n\u201cAi, ai! my poor little sister, alas!\u201d with which both fell to sobbing\nand moaning, and crouched, expecting instantly to be destroyed.\n\nBut the demon\u2019s teeth caught in the meshes of the invisible shield,\nand, howling with vexation, he began struggling to free himself of the\nencumbrance. \u00c1haiy\u00fata drew a shaft to the point and let fly. With a\nthundering noise that rent the rocks, and a rush of strong wind, the\nshaft blazed through the air and buried itself in the demon\u2019s shoulders,\npiercing him through ere the thunder had half done pealing. Swift as\nmountain sheep were the leaps and light steps of the brothers, who,\nbounding to the shelf of rock, drew their war-clubs and soon softened\nthe hard skull of the old demon with them. The younger sister was\nunharmed save by fright; but the elder sister lay where she had sat,\ninsensible.\n\n\u201cHold!\u201d cried M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, \u201cshe was to blame, but then--\u201d Lifting the\nswooning maiden in his strong little arms, he laid her apart from the\nothers, and, breathing into her nostrils, soon revived her eyes to\nwisdom.\n\n\u201c_This day have we, through the power of sawanikia, seen[24] for our\nfather an enemy of our children men. A beast that caused unto fatherless\nchildren, unto menless women, unto womenless men (who thus became\nthrough his evil will), tears and sad thoughts, has this day been looked\nupon by the Sun and laid low. May the favors of the gods thus meet us\never._\u201d\n\n [24] To \u201csee\u201d an enemy signifies, in Zu\u00f1i mythology, to take his\n life.\n\nThus said the two brothers, as they stood over the gasping, still\nstruggling but dying demon; and as they closed their little prayer, the\nmaidens, who now first saw whom they had to thank for their\ndeliverance, were overwhelmed with gladness, yet shame. They exclaimed,\nin response to the prayer: \u201c_May they, indeed, thus meet you and\nourselves!_\u201d Then they breathed upon their hands.\n\nThe two brothers now turned toward the girls. \u201cLook ye upon the last\nenemy of men,\u201d said they, \u201cwhom this day we have had the power of\n_sawanikia_ given us to destroy; whom this day the father of all, our\nfather the Sun, has looked upon, whose light of life this day our\nweapons have cut off; whose path of life this day our father has\ndivided. Not ourselves, but our father has done this deed, through us.\nHaste to your home in H\u00e9shokta and tell your father these things; and\ntell him, pray, that he must assemble his priests and teach them these\nour words, for we divide our paths of life henceforth from one another\nand from the paths of men, no more to mingle save in spirit with the\nchildren of men. But we shall depart for our everlasting home in the\nmountains--the one to the Mountain of Thunder, the other to the Mount of\nthe Beloved--to guard from sunrise to sunset the land of the\nCorn-priests of Earth, that the foolish among men break not into the\nMiddle Country of Earth and lay it waste. Yet we shall require of our\nchildren the plumes wherewith we dress our thoughts, and the forms of\nour being wherewith men may renew us each year at mid-sun. Henceforth\ntwo stars at morning and evening will be seen, the one going before, the\nother following, the Sun-father--the one \u00c1haiy\u00fata, his herald; the\nother M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, his guardian; warriors both, and fathers of men. May\nthe trail of life be finished ere divided! Go ye happily hence.\u201d\n\nThe maidens breathed from the hands of the Twain, and with bowed heads\nand a prayer of thanks started down the pathway toward the Town of the\nCliffs. When they came to their home, the old father asked whence they\ncame. They told the story of their adventure and repeated the words of\nthe Beloved.\n\nThe old man bowed his head, and said: \u201cIt was \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma!\u201d\nThen he made a prayer of thanks, and cast abroad on the winds white meal\nof the seeds of earth and shells from the Great Waters of the World, the\npollen of beautiful flowers, and the paints of war.\n\n\u201cIt is well!\u201d he said. \u201cFour days hence I will assemble my warriors, and\nwe will cut the plume-sticks, paint and feather them, and place them on\nhigh mountains, that through their knowledge and power of medicine our\nBeloved Two Warriors may take them unto themselves.\u201d\n\nNow, when the maidens disappeared among the rocks below, the brothers\nlooked each at the other and laughed. Then they shouted, and \u00c1haiy\u00fata\nkicked \u00c1tahsaia\u2019s ugly carcass till it gurgled, at which the two boys\nshouted again most hilariously and laughed. \u201cThat\u2019s what we proposed to\ndo with you, old beast!\u201d they cried out.\n\n\u201cBut, brother younger,\u201d said \u00c1haiy\u00fata, \u201cwhat shall be done with him\nnow?\u201d\n\n\u201cLet\u2019s skin him,\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma.\n\nSo they set to work and skinned the body from foot to head, as one\nskins a fawn when one wishes to make a seed-bag. Then they put sticks\ninto the legs and arms, and tied strings to them, and stuffed the body\nwith dry grass and moss; and where they set the thing up against the\ncliff it looked verily like the living \u00c1tahsaia.\n\n\u201cUhh! what an ugly beast he was!\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma. Then he shouted:\n\u201c_Wahaha, hihiho!_\u201d and almost doubled up with laughter. \u201cWon\u2019t we have\nfun with old grandmother, though. Hurry up; let\u2019s take care of the rest\nof him!\u201d\n\nThey cut off the head, and \u00c1haiy\u00fata said to it: \u201c_Thou hast been a liar,\nand told a falsehood for every life thou hast taken in the world;\ntherefore shall thou become a lying star, and each night thy guilt shall\nbe seen of all men throughout the wide world._\u201d He twirled the bloody\nhead around once or twice, and cast it with all might into the air. _Wa\nmuu!_ it sped through the spaces into the middle of the sky like a spirt\nof blood, and now it is a great red star. It rises in summer-time and\ntells of the coming morning when it is only midnight; hence it is called\n_Mokwanosana_ (Great Lying Star).\n\nThen M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma seized the great knife and ripped open the abdomen with\none stroke. Grasping the intestines, he tore them out and exclaimed:\n\u201c_Ye have devoured and digested the flesh of men over the whole wide\nworld; therefore ye shall be stretched from one end of the earth to the\nother, and the children of those ye have wasted will look upon ye every\nnight and will say to one another: \u2018Ah, the entrails of him who caused\nsad thoughts to our grandfathers shine well tonight!\u2019 and they will\nlaugh and sneer at ye._\u201d Whereupon he slung the whole mass aloft, and\n_tsolo!_ it stretched from one end of the world to the other, and became\nthe Great Snow-drift of the Skies (Milky Way). Lifting the rest of the\ncarcass, they threw it down into the chasm whither the old demon had\nthrown so many of his victims, and the rattlesnakes came out and ate of\nthe flesh day after day till their fangs grew yellow with putrid meat,\nand even now their children\u2019s fangs are yellow and poisonous.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cNow, then, for some fun!\u201d shouted M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma. \u201cDo you catch the old bag\nup and prance around with it a little; and I will run off to see how it\nlooks.\u201d\n\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata caught up the effigy, and, hiding himself behind, pulled at the\nstrings till it looked, of all things thinkable, like the living\n\u00c1tahsaia himself starting out for a hunt, for they threw the lion skins\nover it and tied the bow in its hand.\n\n\u201cExcellent! Excellent!\u201d exclaimed the boys, and they clapped their hands\nand _wa-ha-ha-ed_ and _ho-ho-ho-ed_ till they were sore. Then, dragging\nthe skin along, they ran as fast as they could, down to the plain below\nTwin Mountain.\n\nThe Sun was climbing down the western ladder, and their old grandmother\nhad been looking all over the mountains and valleys below to see if the\ntwo boys were coming. She had just climbed the ladder and was gazing and\nfretting and saying: \u201cOh! those two boys! terrible pests and as\nhard-hearted and as long-winded in having their own way as a turtle is\nin having his! Now, something has happened to them; I knew it would,\u201d\nwhen suddenly a frightened scream came up from below.\n\n\u201c_Ho-o-o-ta! Ho-o-o-ta!_ Come quick! Help! Help!\u201d the voice cried, as if\nin anguish.\n\n\u201cUhh!\u201d exclaimed the old woman, and she went so fast in her excitement\nthat she tumbled through the trap-door, and then jumped up, scolding and\ngroaning.\n\nShe grabbed a poker of pi\u00f1on, and rushed out of the house. Sure enough,\nthere was poor M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma running hard and calling again and again for\nher to hurry down. The old woman hobbled along over the rough path as\nfast as she could, and until her wind was blowing shorter and shorter,\nwhen, suddenly turning around the crags, she caught sight of \u00c1haiy\u00fata\nstruggling to get away from \u00c1tahsaia.\n\n\u201c_O ai o!_ I knew it! I knew it!\u201d cried the old woman; and she ran\nfaster than ever until she came near enough to see that her poor\ngrandson was almost tired out, and that M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma had lost even his\nwar-club. \u201cStiffen your feet,--my boys,--wait--a bit,\u201d puffed the old\nwoman, and, flying into a passion, she rushed at the effigy and began to\npound it with her poker, till the dust fairly smoked out of the dry\ngrass, and the skin doubled up as if it were in pain.\n\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma rolled and kicked in the grass, and \u00c1haiy\u00fata soon had to let\nthe stuffed demon fall down for sheer laughing. But the old woman never\nceased. She belabored the demon and cursed his cannibal heart and told\nhim that was what he got for chasing her grandsons, and that, and this,\nand that, whack! whack! without stopping, until she thought the monster\nsurely must be dead. Then she was about to rest when suddenly the boys\npulled the strings, and the demon sprang up before her, seemingly as\nwell as ever. Again the old woman fell to, but her strokes kept getting\nfeebler and feebler, her breath shorter and shorter, until her wind went\nout and she fell to the ground.\n\nHow the boys did laugh and roll on the ground when the old grandmother\nmoaned: \u201cAlas! alas! This day--my day--light is--cut off--and my wind of\nlife--fast going.\u201d\n\nThe old woman covered her head with her tattered mantle; but when she\nfound that \u00c1tahsaia did not move, she raised her eyes and looked through\na rent. There were her two grandsons rolling and kicking on the grass\nand holding their mouths with both hands, their eyes swollen and faces\nred with laughter. Then she suddenly looked for the demon. There lay the\nskin, all torn and battered out of shape.\n\n\u201cSo ho! you pesky wretches; that\u2019s the way you treat me, is it? Well!\nnever again will I help you, never!\u201d she snapped, \u201cnor shall you ever\nlive with me more!\u201d Whereupon the old woman jumped up and hobbled away.\n\nBut little did the brothers care. They laughed till she was far away,\nand then said one to the other: \u201cIt is done!\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nSince that time, the grandmother has gone, no one knows where. But\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma are the bright stars of the morning and evening,\njust in front of and behind the Sun-father himself. Yet their spirits\nhover over their shrines on Thunder Mountain and the Mount of the\nBeloved, they say, or linger over the Middle of the World, forever to\nguide the games and to guard the warriors of the Land of Zu\u00f1i. Thus it\nwas in the days of the ancients.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n [Illustration: {Carvings}]\n\n\n\n\nTHE HERMIT M\u00cdTSINA\n\n\nWhen all was new, and the gods dwelt in the ancient places, long, long\nbefore the time of our ancients, many were the gods--some destined for\ngood and some for evil or for the doing of things beneath understanding.\nAnd those of evil intent, so painfully bad were they to become that not\nin the company and council of the precious beloved of the _K\u00e2k\u00e2_ (the\nOrder of the Sacred Drama) could they be retained.\n\nThus it happened, in the times of our ancients, long, long ago, that\nthere dwelt all alone in the Ca\u00f1on of the Pines, southeast of Zu\u00f1i,\nM\u00edtsina the Hermit. Of evil understanding he; therefore it had been said\nto him (by the gods): \u201cAlone shalt thou dwell, being unwise and evil in\nthy ways, until thou hast, through much happening, even become worthy to\ndwell amongst us.\u201d Thus it was that M\u00edtsina lived alone in his house in\nthe Ca\u00f1on of the Pines.\n\nSometimes when a young man, dressed in very fine apparel (wearing his\ncollars of shell, and turquoise earrings, and other precious things\nwhich were plentiful in the days of our ancients), would be out hunting,\nand chanced to go through the Ca\u00f1on of the Pines and near to the house\nof M\u00edtsina, he would hear the sounds of gaming from within; for, being\nalone, the hermit whiled away his time in playing at the game of sacred\narrows (or cane-cards).\n\nForever from the ceiling of his house there hung suspended his\nbasket-drum, made of a large wicker bowl, over the mouth of which was\nstretched tightly a soft buckskin, even like the basket-drums which we\nuse in the playing of cane-cards today, and which you know are suspended\nwith the skin-side downward from the ceilings of the gaming rooms in the\ntopmost houses of our town. Though the one he had was no better than\nthose we have today, save that it was larger and handsomer perhaps, yet\nhe delighted to call it his cloud canopy, bethinking himself of the\ndrum-basket of his former associates, the gods, which is even the\nrounded sky itself, with the clouds stretched across it. Forever upon\nthe floor of his house there lay spread a great buffalo robe, the skin\nupward dressed soft and smooth, as white as corn-flour, and painted with\nthe many-colored symbols and counting marks of the game, even as our\nown. But he delighted to call it his sacred terraced plain,[25]\nbethinking himself of the robe-spread of the gods, which is even the\noutspread earth itself, bordered by terraced horizons, and diversified\nby mountains, valleys, and bright places, which are the symbols and\ngame marks whereby the gods themselves count up the score of their game.\n\n [25] The words \u201cterrace,\u201d \u201csacred terrace,\u201d \u201cterraced plain\u201d\n (_awithluiane_, _awithluian-pewine_), and the like, wherever\n they occur, refer to the figurative expression for the earth in\n the Zu\u00f1i rituals addressed to the gods, where they are used as\n more nearly conforming to the usage of the gods. The symbol of\n the earth on the sacred altars is a terraced or zigzag figure or\n decoration, and the same figure appears in their carvings and\n other ornamental work. The disgraced god M\u00edtsina applied the\n term to the robe spread out as the bed for his game. It may be\n stated in further explanation that the country in which the\n Zu\u00f1is have wandered and lived for unnumbered generations, and\n where they still dwell, is made up largely of mesas, or flat-top\n mountains or elevations, rising one above another and showing as\n terraces on the horizon. Beheld at great distances, or in the\n evening, these mountain terraces are mere silhouettes and serve\n to exaggerate the zigzag spaces of light between them. As the\n conventional sacred emblem for the earth is a terrace, outspread\n or upreaching, as the case may be, so the conventional sacred\n emblem for the sky is an inverted terrace.\n\n To the gods the whole earth is represented as having seemed so\n small that they invariably spoke of it as the terraced plain,\n and in their playing of this game they are supposed to have used\n it as the bed for the game, as the Zu\u00f1i people used the\n outspread buffalo robe for the purpose.\n\nHearing these sounds of the game in passing, the young man would\nnaturally draw near and listen. Though all alone, every time he made a\ngood throw M\u00edtsina would exclaim \u201c_Her-r-r-r!_\u201d and as the canes struck\nthe skin of the drum-basket above, _tcha-le-le, tcha-le-le_, it would\nsound; and _ke-le-le_ they would rattle as they fell on the robe below.\n\u201cHa! ha!\u201d old M\u00edtsina would exclaim, as if triumphantly to some opponent\nin the game,--\u201c_Kohakwa iyathtokyai!_\u201d as much as to say: \u201cGood for you,\nold fellow! The white-corn symbol fell uppermost!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh!\u201d the young man would exclaim as he listened. \u201cOh!\u201d--and, wishing to\nlearn more about the matter, he would stealthily climb up the ladder and\npeer down through the sky-hole. Old M\u00edtsina would catch sight of him, be\nsure of that, and greet him most cordially, calling to him: \u201cCome in,\ncome in, my fine young fellow, come in; let\u2019s have a game!\u201d\n\nNow, he had practised so long that he had acquired more skill than\nanyone else throughout the world--at least among mortals; so that when\nany of the young men chanced to play with him, he invariably lost, poor\nfellow! Hanging on the pole along the north side of M\u00edtsina\u2019s house were\nthe necklaces, embroidered mantles, and turquoises, and all sorts of\ntreasures which he had won in this way; and as many on the western side,\non the southern side as many, and on the eastern side also.\n\nWhen the young man came in, M\u00edtsina would continue: \u201cMy good friend, sit\nright down over there. Have you your canes today?\u201d If the young man said\n\u201cYes,\u201d he would say: \u201cHa! very well.\u201d Or, if he said \u201cNo,\u201d \u201cNever mind,\u201d\nM\u00edtsina would say; \u201chere are some,\u201d producing a very fine set of\npolished canes. The young man, being thus pressed, would stake perhaps\nhis necklace or his earrings, and the game would begin. Losing them, he\nwould stake his clothing, his bows and arrows--in fact, everything he\nhad about him. You know how it is with gamesters when they have lost a\ngreat deal and wish to get it back again? Well, so it was then. When the\nyoung man had lost everything, he would bow his head on his hand, and\nsit thinking. Then old M\u00edtsina, with a jolly, devil-may-care manner,\nwould say: \u201cBet your left thigh. I\u2019ll put all you have lost and more,\ntoo, on that.\u201d The young man would say to himself, with a sigh of\nrelief: \u201cWhat an old fool you are!\u201d and reply: \u201cAll right! I will take\nyour bet.\u201d Alas! the one thigh he bet is lost; then the other goes\nthe same way; then one of his sides and arms; losing which, he bet the\nother, and so on, until he had bet away his whole body, including his\nhead. Then in utter despair he would exclaim: \u201cDo with me as thou wilt.\nI am thy slave.\u201d And old M\u00edtsina with the same devil-may-care manner\nwould catch him up, take him out to the back of his house and wring his\nneck that he might not go back and report his losses to his people.\n\n [Illustration: P\u00c1LOWAHTIWA\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\nAgain, some other well-equipped young man would be passing that way, and\nhearing the sound made by the solitary player, and being attracted\nthereby, would be drawn in the same way into the game, would lose\neverything, and old M\u00edtsina would wring his neck and keep his treasures.\n\nThus it was in the days of the ancients. Great were the losses of the\nyoung men, and many of them perished.\n\nWell, one day little \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma--the War-gods of peace\ntimes--who dwelt, as you know, where their shrine now stands on Face\nMountain, with their old grandmother,--went out hunting rabbits and\nprairie-dogs. It chanced that in following the rabbits along the cliffs\nof a side ca\u00f1on they came into the Ca\u00f1on of the Pines, near where the\nhouse of M\u00edtsina stood. Presently they heard the sounds of his game.\n\u201cHu, hu!\u201d the old fellow would exclaim as he cast his canes into the\nair. _Ke-le-le-le_ they would rattle as they fell on the skin.\n\n\u201cUh!\u201d exclaimed \u00c1haiy\u00fata, the elder. \u201cBrother younger, listen.\u201d\n\nThe younger listened. \u201cBy my eyes!\u201d exclaimed he, \u201cit is someone\nplaying at cane-cards. Let\u2019s go and have a peep at him.\u201d So they climbed\nthe ladder and peered in through the sky-hole.\n\nPresently, old M\u00edtsina espied them, and called out: \u201cHa! my little\nfellows; glad to see you today! How are you? Come in, come in! I am\ndying for a game; I was playing here all by myself.\u201d\n\nThe two little War-gods clambered down the ladder, and old M\u00edtsina\nplaced blankets for them, invited them most cordially to sit down, and\nasked if they would like to play a game. Nothing loth they, seeing all\nthe fine things hanging round his room; so out from their girdles they\ndrew their cane-cards, for those, as you know, they always carried with\nthem.\n\nPerhaps I have not told you that even the basket-drum old M\u00edtsina played\nwith was fringed with the handsome long turquoise earrings which he had\nwon, and even under the robe on which he played there were piled one\nover another, in a great flat heap, the finest of the necklaces gathered\nfrom those whom he had defeated in playing and then slain.\n\n\u201cWhat would you like to put up?\u201d asked the old fellow, pointing around\nhis room--particularly to the basket-drum fringed with turquoises--and\nlifting the robe and showing just enough of the necklaces underneath it\nto whet the appetites of the little War-gods.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ve nothing fine enough to bet for these things,\u201d said they\nruefully.\n\n\u201cO ho!\u201d cried M\u00edtsina. \u201cNo matter, no matter at all, my boys. Bet your\nbows and arrows and clothing; if you like, bet everything you have on,\nand I\u2019ll put up that poleful there on the north side of my room.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood! good! tell him all right,\u201d whispered the younger brother to the\nelder.\n\nSo the elder agreed, chuckling to himself, for it was rarely that a man\nwas found who could beat the little War-gods in a game. And they began\ntheir playing. How the turquoises rattled as they threw their canes! How\nthe canes jingled and thumped as they fell on the robe!\n\nThe game was merry and long, and well played on both sides; but the poor\nlittle War-gods lost. Their countenances fell; but old M\u00edtsina, with a\nmerry twinkle in his eyes, exclaimed: \u201cOh pshaw! never mind, never\nmind!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the two War-gods, \u201cbut how in the world are we ever going\nback to our grandmother in this plight?\u201d--glancing down over their bare\nbodies, for they had bet even the clothing off their backs. \u201cWhat else\ncan we bet? How can we win back what we have lost?\u201d\n\n\u201cBet your left thighs,\u201d said the old hermit.\n\nThey thought a moment, and concluded they would do so. So the game was\nstaked again and begun and the canes rattled merrily; but they lost\nagain. Then old M\u00edtsina suggested that they bet their other thighs. They\ndid so and again lost. Then he suggested they should bet their left\nsides, hoping forthwith to get hold of their hearts, but the young\nWar-gods were crafty. The elder one exclaimed: \u201cAll right!\u201d but the\nyounger one said: \u201cGoodness! as for you, you can bet your left side if\nyou want to, but I\u2019ll bet my right, for my heart is on my left side, and\nwho ever heard of a man betting away his heart!\u201d\n\n\u201cJust as you like,\u201d said M\u00edtsina, \u201cbut if you\u2019ll bet your bodies up to\nyour necks I will stake all you have lost and all I have besides,\u201d said\nhe, looking around on his fine possessions.\n\n\u201cDone!\u201d cried the War-gods. And again they played and again lost. Then\nthey had nothing left but their heads and ears and eyes to bet. Finally\nthey concluded to bet these also, for said they to one another: \u201cWhat\ngood will our heads do us, even though they be the crown-pieces of our\nbeing, without the rest?\u201d\n\nThey played again, but the poor fellows lost their heads also. \u201cAlas!\nalas! do as thou wilt with us,\u201d exclaimed the little War-gods, with\nrueful countenances.\n\nOld M\u00edtsina, locking them up in a small recess of his house, went out\nand gathered before his front door a great quantity of dry wood. Then he\ntied the little fellows hand and foot, and laid them near by,--not near\nenough to burn them up, but near enough so that they would scorch,--and\nlighted the fire, to have the pleasure of roasting them. When they began\nto brown and sizzle a little they writhed and howled with pain, but\nthey were tough and quite bad, as you know, and this did not kill them.\n\nWho can hide a thing from the eyes of the gods? The elder brothers of\nthese two foolish little War-gods, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, those who\ndwelt on Thunder Mountain, became aware of what was going on. \u201cCome,\nbrother younger,\u201d said the elder, strapping on his quiver and taking his\nbow in hand, \u201ccome, let us off to old M\u00edtsina\u2019s house and teach him a\nlesson!\u201d So, in a twinkling they were climbing down the mountain,\nspeeding across the wide valley, and threading their way through the\nCa\u00f1on of the Pines.\n\nM\u00edtsina had grown tired of watching the poor little War-gods and had\ngone in to have another little game, and there he was pitching his\ncane-cards and talking to himself, as usual. The two gods hauled their\nunfortunate brothers away from the fire, and, climbing the ladder,\npeered in. M\u00edtsina espied them, and as usual invited them in to a game.\nWith as jolly an air as his own they accepted his challenge and sat\ndown. M\u00edtsina offered to bet all his fine things hanging on the north\nside of the house. \u201cWhat will you put up, my little fellows?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cIf you will include those ugly little devils that we saw sizzling\nbefore the fire when we came in, we will bet you everything we have with\nus,\u201d said they.\n\n\u201cGood! good! haul them in!\u201d shouted M\u00edtsina.\n\nThe War-gods scrambled out of the house, and, by no means gently,\ndragged their wretched little brothers in by the heels and dumped them\ndown on the floor to show their indifference, sat down, and began to\nplay. They bet their weapons, holding up the knife of war which they\ncarried, the point of lightning itself fatal in power,--splitter of\nmountains and overcomer of demons and men alike.\n\nOld M\u00edtsina, when told of the power of the weapons, became doubtful as\nto his company, but presently fell to and played with a will. He lost.\nThen he put up all the rest of his goods hanging on the other side of\nthe room. Again he lost, and again, even the turquoises hanging from the\nbasket-drum, the necklaces under his robe, and the things he played\nwith, and getting wild with excitement, sure that his luck would return,\nfollowed out the plan he had so often suggested to others, and bet away\nhis thighs, then his sides and arms, then his head and ears, excepting\nhis eyes, and last of all his very eyes themselves. Each time the young\nWar-gods won. The old gambler let his hands fall by his sides, and\ndropped his head on his breast, sick with humiliation and chagrin.\n\n\u201cNow, my brother,\u201d said the elder to the younger, \u201cwhat shall we do with\nthis beast?\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d said the other. \u201cWe can\u2019t kill him; yet, if we leave him\nto go his own way, he will gamble and gamble without ceasing, and make\nno end of trouble. Suppose we make a good man of him.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow?\u201d asked the other.\n\n\u201cPluck out his eyes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCapital!\u201d exclaimed the first. So, while one of them held the old\nfellow down, the other gouged out his eyes, and with pain and horror he\nutterly forgot in unconsciousness (swooned away).\n\nThe two elder War-gods set their younger brothers on their feet, and all\nfour of them joined in clearing out the treasures and magnificent\npossessions which M\u00edtsina through all these years had won from his\nvictims; and these they took away with them that by their sacred\nknowledge they might change them into blessings for the faithful of\ntheir children among men, and thus return, as it were, what had been\nlost. Then away they went, leaving old M\u00edtsina still as witless as a\ndead man, to his fate.\n\nBy-and-by the old man came to his senses, and raising himself up, tried\nto look around, but, forsooth, he could not see.\n\n\u201cWhat in the world has happened? What a fearful pain I have in my\ntemples!\u201d said he. \u201cWhat is the matter? Is it night?\u201d\n\nThen gradually his situation came to him. He uttered a groan of pain and\nsorrow, and, putting out his hand, felt the wall and raised himself by\nit. Then he crept along, feeling his way to the window, not yet quite\ncertain whether he had been dreaming all this and it was still night, or\nwhether he had really lost everything and been bereft of his eyes by\nthose midgets. When he put his hand into the window, however, he felt\nthe warm sunlight streaming in, and knew that it was still day, and that\nit was all true.\n\nIn feeling there he chanced to touch a little package of pitch which\nhad been laid in the window. He felt it all over with both hands, but\ncould not quite tell what it was. Then he put it against his cheek, but\nwas still uncertain; then he rubbed it, and smelt of it. \u201cPitch! pitch!\nas I live!\u201d said he. \u201cI have often lighted this when it was dark, and\nbeen able to see. Now, maybe, if I light it this time, I shall be able\nto see again.\u201d He felt his way all round the room to the fireplace, and\nafter burning his fingers two or three times in feeling for coals, he\nfound a sliver and held it in the coals and ashes until he heard it\nbegin to sputter and crackle. Then he lighted the pitch with it. Eyeless\nthough he was, the fumes from this medicine of the woodlands restored to\nhim a kind of vision. \u201cGood!\u201d cried the old fellow, \u201cI see again!\u201d But\nwhen he looked around, he saw nothing as it had been formerly; and his\nthoughts reverted to the great City of the Gods (_Kothluellakwin_); and,\nas it were, he could see the way thither. So he turned toward his door,\nand with a sigh gave up his old place of abode, relinquished all thought\nof his possessions, gave up his former bad inclinations, and turned\nwestward toward the City of the Gods and Souls.\n\nAs he went along holding his light before him and following it, he sang\na mournful song. The Birds, hearing this song, flocked around him, and\nas he went on singing, exclaimed to one another: \u201cHa! ha! the old\nwretch; he has lost his eyes! Served him right! Let\u2019s put out his light\nfor him.\u201d\n\nNow, before that time, strange as it may seem, the Eagles and even the\nCrows were as white as the foam on warring waters. The Eagles were so\nstrong that they thrust the other birds away, and began to pounce down\nat M\u00edtsina\u2019s light, trying to blow it out with their wings. _Thluh!\nthluh!_ they would flap into the light; but still it would not go out;\nand they only singed their feathers and blackened their wings and tails\nwith smoke. In looking at one another they saw what a sad plight they\nwere in. \u201cGood gracious, brothers!\u201d exclaimed some of them to the\nothers, \u201cwe have made a fine mess of our white plumage!\u201d And they gave\nit up.\n\nThen the Crows rushed in and flapped against the light, but they could\nnot put it out; and although they grew blacker and blacker, they would\nnot give it up. So they became as black as crows are now; and ever since\nthen eagles have been speckled with brown and black, and crows have been\nblack, even to the tips of their beaks. And whenever in the Sacred Drama\nDance of our people old M\u00edtsina appears, he sings the doleful song and\ncarries the light of pitch pine. He goes naked, with the exception of a\nwretched old cloth at his loins; and he wears a mask with deep holes for\neyes, blood streaming from them.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nHOW THE TWINS OF WAR AND CHANCE, \u00c1HAIY\u00daTA AND M\u00c1TSAIL\u00c9MA, FARED WITH\nTHE UNBORN-MADE MEN OF THE UNDERWORLD[26]\n\n [26] Reprinted from the _Journal of American Folk-Lore_, vol.\n v., No. 16, pp. 49-56.\n\n\nTRANSLATOR\u2019S INTRODUCTION\n\nHeretofore I have withheld from publication such single examples of Zu\u00f1i\nfolk-lore as the following, in order that the completer series might be\nbrought forth in the form of an unbroken collection, with ample\nintroductory as well as supplementary chapters, essential to the proper\nunderstanding by ourselves of the many distinctively Zu\u00f1i meanings and\nconceptions involved in the various allusions with which any one of them\nteems. Yet, to avoid encumbering the present example with any but the\nbriefest of notes, I must ask leave to refer the reader to the more\ngeneral yet detailed chapters I have already written in the main, and\nwith which, I have reason to hope, I will ere long be able to present\nthe tales in question. Meanwhile, I would refer likewise to the essay I\nhave recently prepared for the Thirteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of\nAmerican Ethnology, on _Zu\u00f1i Creation Myths_ in their relation to\nprimitive dance and other dramaturgic ceremonies.\n\nEver one of my chief story-tellers was Wa\u00edhusiwa,--of the priestly kin\nof Zu\u00f1i. He had already told me somewhat more than fifty of the folk\ntales, long and short, of his people, when one night I asked him for\n\u201conly one more story of the grandfathers.\u201d Wishing to evade me, he\nreplied with more show than sincerity:\n\n\u201cThere is a North, and of it I have told you _t\u00e9-la-p\u2019-na-we_.[27]\nThere is a West; of it also I have told you _t\u00e9-la-p\u2019-na-we_. There are\nthe South and East; of them likewise have I told you _t\u00e9-la-p\u2019-na-we_.\nEven of the Above have I not but lately told you of the youth who made\nlove to his eagle and dwelt apace in the Sky-world? And of the great\nWorld-embracing Waters? You have been told of the hunter who married the\nSerpent-maiden and journeyed to the Mountain of Sunset. Now, therefore,\nmy word-pouch is as empty as the food-pack of a lost hunter, and--\u201d\n\n [27] From _t\u00e9-na-la-a_, \u201ctime or times of,\u201d and _p\u00e9-na-we_,\n words or speeches (tales): \u201ctales of time.\u201d\n\n\u201cFeel in the bottom of it, then,\u201d interposed old P\u00e1lowahtiwa, who was\nsitting near, \u201cand tell him of the Underworld.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hi-ta!_ [Listen!] brother younger,\u201d said Wa\u00edhusiwa, nonplussed but\never ready. \u201cDid you ever hear tell of the people who could not digest,\nhaving, forsooth, no proper insides wherewithal to do so? Did you ever\nhear of them, brother younger?\u201d\n\n\u201cNay, never; not even from my own grandfathers,\u201d said I. \u201c_Sons \u00e9so_ to\nyour story; short be it or long.\u201d[28]\n\n [28] The invariable formula for beginning a folk tale is, by the\n raconteur: \u201c_S\u00f3n ah-tchi!_\u201d (\u201cLet us take up\u201d)--_t\u00e9-la-p\u2019-ne_,\n or \u201ca folk tale,\u201d being understood. To this the auditors or\n listeners respond: \u201c_\u00c9-so!_\u201d (\u201cYea, verily.\u201d) Again, by the\n raconteur: \u201c_Sons i-n\u00f3-o-to-na! Tem_,\u201d etc. (\u201cLet us (tell of)\n the times of creation! When,\u201d etc.) Again, by the listeners:\n \u201c_Sons \u00e9so! Te-\u00e4-t\u00fa!_\u201d (\u201cYea, let us, verily! Be it so.\u201d)\n\n\u201c_Sons \u00e9so tse-n\u00e1!_\u201d (\u201cCool your \u2018_sons \u00e9so!_\u2019 and wait till _I_\nbegin.\u201d)--F. H. C.\n\n\nZU\u00d1I INTRODUCTION\n\nIt seems--so the words of the grandfathers say--that in the Underworld\nwere many strange things and beings, even villages of men, long ago.\nBut the people of those villages were unborn-made,--more like the ghosts\nof the dead than ourselves, yet more like ourselves than are the ghosts\nof the dead, for as the dead are more finished of being than we are,\nthey were less so, as smoke, being hazy, is less fine than mist, which\nis filmy; or as green corn, though raw, is soft like cooked corn which\nis done (like the dead), and as both are softer than ripe corn which,\nthough raw, is hardened by age (as we are of meat).\n\nAnd also, these people were, you see, dead in a way, in that they had\nnot yet begun to live, that is, as we live, in the daylight fashion.\n\nAnd so, it would seem, partly like ourselves, they had bodies, and\npartly like the dead they had no bodies, for being unfinished they were\nunfixed. And whereas the dead are like the wind, and take form from\nwithin of their own wills (_y\u00e4n\u2032te-tseman_), these people were really\nlike the smoke,[29] taking form from without of the outward touching of\nthings, even as growing and unripe grains and fruits do.\n\n [29] The Zu\u00f1i classification of states of growth or being is as\n elaborate as that of relative space in their mythology--both\n extremely detailed and systematic, yet, when understood, purely\n primitive and simple. The universe is supposed to have been\n generated from haze (_sh\u00ed-wai-a_) produced by light (of the\n All-container, Sun-father) out of darkness. The observed analogy\n of this in nature is the appearance of haze (both heat and\n steam) preceding growth in springtime; the appearance of the\n world, of growing and living things, through mist seemingly\n rising out of the darkness each morning. In harmony with this\n conception of the universe is the correlative one that every\n being (as to soul, at least) passes through many successive\n states of becoming, always beginning as a _sh\u00ed-u-na h\u00e2-i_ (haze\n being), and passing through the raw or soft (_k\u2019ya-pi-na_), the\n formative (_k\u2019ya\u00ed-yu-na_), variable (_thl\u00edm-ni-na_), fixed or\n done (_ak-na_), and finished or dead (_\u00e4-sh\u00ef-k\u2019ya_) states;\n whilst the condition of the surpassing beings (gods) may be any\n of these at will (_i-thlim-na_, or _thlim-nah-na_, etc.). There\n are many analogies of this observed by the Zu\u00f1i, likening, as he\n does, the generation of being to that of fire with the\n fire-drill and stick. The most obvious of these is the\n appearance, in volumes, of \u201csmoke-steam\u201d or haze just previously\n to ignition, and its immediate disappearance with ignition.\n Further, the succession of beings in the becoming of a complete\n being may be regarded as an orderly personification of growth\n phenomena as observed in plants and seeds; for example, in corn,\n which is characterized by no fewer than thirteen mystic names,\n according to its stages of growth. This whole subject is much\n more fully and conclusively set forth in the writings to which I\n have already referred.\n\nWell, in consequence, it was passing strange what a state they were in!\nBethink ye! Their persons were much the reverse of our own, for wherein\nwe are hard, they were soft--pliable. Wherein we are most completed,\nthey were most unfinished; for not having even the organs of digestion,\nwhereby we fare lustily, food in its solidity was to them destructive,\nwhereas to us it is sustaining. When, therefore, they would eat, they\ndreaded most the food itself, taking thought not to touch it, and merely\nabsorbing the mist thereof. As fishes fare chiefly on water, and birds\non air, so these people ate by gulping down the steam and savor of their\ncooked things whilst cooking or still hot; then they threw the real food\naway, forsooth!\n\n\nTHE TALE\n\nNow, the Twain Little-ones, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma,[30] were ever\nseeking scenes of contention; for what was deathly and dreadful to\nothers was lively and delightful to them; so that cries of distress were\never their calls of invitation, as to a feast or dance is the call of a\npriest to us.\n\n [30] For the mythic origin of these two chief gods under the\n Sun, as his right- and left-hand being, their relation to\n chance, war, games, etc., I again refer the reader to the _Zu\u00f1i\n Creation Myths_.\n\nOn a day when the world was quiet, they were sitting by the side of a\ndeep pool. They heard curious sounds coming up through the waters, as\nthough the bubbles were made by moans of the waters affrighted.\n\n\u201cUh!\u201d cried the elder. \u201cWhat is that?\u201d\n\nThe younger brother turned his ear to the ground and listened.\n\n\u201cThere is trouble down there, dire trouble, for the people of the\nUnderworld are shrieking war-cries like daft warriors and wailing like\nmurder-mourners. What can be the matter? Let us descend and see!\u201d\n\n\u201cJust so!\u201d said \u00c1haiy\u00fata.\n\nThen they covered their heads with their cord-shields[31]--turned upside\ndown--and shut their eyes and stepped into the deep pool.\n\n [31] _Pi-a-la-we_ (cord or cotton shields), evidently an ancient\n style of shield still surviving in the form of sacrificial\n net-shields of the Priesthood of the Bow. But the shields of\n these two gods were supposed to have been spun from the clouds\n which, supporting the sky-ocean, that in turn supported the\n sky-world (as this world is believed to be supported by\n under-waters and clouds), were hence possessed of the power of\n floating--upward when turned up, downward when reversed.\n\n\u201cNow we are in the dark,\u201d said they, \u201clike the dark down there. Well,\nthen, by means of the dark let us go down\u201d--for they had wondrous power,\nhad those Twain; the magic of in-knowing-how thought had they.\n\nDown, like light through dark places, they went; dry through the\nwaters; straight toward that village in the Underworld.\n\n\u201cWhew! the poor wretches are already dead,\u201d cried they, \u201cand\nrotting\u201d--for their noses were sooner accustomed to the dark than their\neyes, which they now opened.\n\n\u201cWe might as well have spared ourselves the coming, and stayed above,\u201d\nsaid \u00c1haiy\u00fata.\n\n\u201cNay, not so,\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma. \u201cLet us go on and see how they lived,\neven if they are dead.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the elder; and as they fared toward the village they\ncould see quite plainly now, for they had made it dark (to themselves)\nby shutting their eyes in the daylight above, so now they made it light\n(to themselves) by opening their eyes in the darkness below and simply\nlooking,--it was their way, you know.\n\n\u201cWell, well!\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, as they came nearer and the stench\ndoubled. \u201cLook at the village; it is full of people; the more they smell\nof carrion the more they seem alive!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, by the chut of an arrow!\u201d exclaimed \u00c1haiy\u00fata. \u201cBut look here! It\nis food we smell--cooked food, all thrown away, as we throw away bones\nand corn-cobs because they are too hard to eat and profitless withal.\nWhat, now, can be the meaning of this?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat, indeed! Who can know save by knowing,\u201d replied the younger\nbrother. \u201cCome, let us lie low and watch.\u201d\n\nSo they went very quietly close to the village, crouched down, and\npeered in. Some people inside were about to eat. They took fine food\nsteaming hot from the cooking-pots and placed it low down in wide\ntrenchers; then they gathered around and sipped in the steam and savor\nwith every appearance of satisfaction; but they were as chary of\ntouching the food or of letting the food touch them as though it were\nthe vilest of refuse.\n\n\u201cDid you see that?\u201d queried the younger brother. \u201cBy the delight of\ndeath,[32] but--\u201d\n\n [32] _H\u00e9-lu-ha-pa_; from _h\u00e9-lu_, or _\u00e9-lu_, \u201churrah,\u201d or \u201chow\n delightful!\u201d--and _h\u00e1-pa_, a corpse-demon, death.\n\n\u201cHist!\u201d cried the elder. \u201cIf they are people of that sort, feeding upon\nthe savor of food, then they will hear the suggestions of sounds better\nthan the sounds themselves, and the very demon fathers would not know\nhow to fare with such people, or to fight them, either!\u201d\n\nHah! But already the people had heard! They set up a clamor of war,\nswarming out to seek the enemy, as well they might, for who would think\nfavorably of a sneaking stranger under the shade of a house-wall\nwatching the food of another? Why, dogs growl even at their own\noffspring for the like of that!\n\n\u201cWhere? Who? What is it?\u201d cried the people, rushing hither and thither\nlike ants in a shower. \u201cHah! There they are! There! Quick!\u201d cried they,\npointing to the Twain, who were cutting away to the nearest hillock. And\nimmediately they fell to singing their war-cry.\n\n \u201c_Ha-a! S\u00fas-ki!\n \u00d3-ma-ta\n H\u00e1-wi-mo-o!\n \u00d3-ma-ta,\n \u00d3-ma-ta H\u00e1-wi-mo!_\u201d[33]\n\nsang they as they ran headlong toward the Two, and then they began\nshouting:\n\n\u201cTread them both into the ground! Smite them both! Fan them out! _Ho-o!\nHa-a! H\u00e1-wi-mo-o \u00f3-ma-ta!_\u201d\n\n [33] This, like so many of the folk-tale songs, can only be\n translated etymologically or by extended paraphrasing. Such\n songs are always jargonistic, either archaic, imitative, or\n adapted from other languages of tribes who possibly supplied\n incidents to the myths themselves; but they are, like the\n latter, strictly harmonized with the native forms of expression\n and phases of belief.\n\nBut the Twain laughed and quickly drew their arrows and loosed them\namongst the crowd. _P\u2019it! tsok!_ sang the arrows through and through the\npeople, but never a one fell.\n\n\u201cWhy, how now is this?\u201d cried the elder brother.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ll club them, then!\u201d said M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, and he whiffed out his\nwar-club and sprang to meet the foremost whom he pummelled well and\nsorely over the head and shoulders. Yet the man was only confused (he\nwas too soft and unstable to be hurt); but another, rushing in at one\nside, was hit by one of the shield-feathers and fell to the ground like\nsmoke driven down under a hawk\u2019s wing.\n\n\u201cHold, brother, I have it! Hold!\u201d cried \u00c1haiy\u00fata. Then he snatched up a\nbunch of dry plume-grass and leaped forward. _Swish!_ Two ways he swept\nthe faces and breasts of the pursuers. Lo! right and left they fell\nlike bees in a rain-storm, and quickly sued for mercy, screeching and\nrunning at the mere sight of the grass-straws.\n\n\u201cYou fools!\u201d cried the brothers. \u201cWhy, then, did ye set upon us? We came\nfor to help you and were merely looking ahead as becomes strangers in\nstrange places, when, lo! you come running out like a mess of mad flies\nwith your \u2018_Ha-a s\u00fas-ki \u00f3-ma-ta!_\u2019 Call us coyote-sneaks, do you? But\nthere! Rest fearless! We hunger; give us to eat.\u201d\n\nSo they led the Twain into the court within the town and quickly brought\nsteaming food for them.\n\nThey sat down and began to blow the food to cool it, whereupon the\npeople cried out in dismay: \u201cHold! Hold, ye heedless strangers; do not\nwaste precious food like that! For shame!\u201d\n\n\u201cWaste food? Ha! This is the way _we_ eat!\u201d said they, and clutching up\nhuge morsels they crammed their mouths full and bolted them almost\nwhole.\n\nThe people were so horrified and sickened at sight of this, that some of\nthem sweated furiously,--which was their way of spewing--whilst others,\nstouter of thought, cried: \u201cHold! hold! Ye will die; ye will surely\nsicken and die if the stuff do but touch ye!\u201d\n\n\u201cHo! ho!\u201d cried the Twain, eating more lustily than ever. \u201cEat thus and\nharden yourselves, you poor, soft things, you!\u201d\n\nJust then there was a great commotion. Everyone rushed to the shelter of\nthe walls and houses, shouting to them to leave off and follow quickly.\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d asked they, looking up and all around.\n\n\u201cWoe, woe! The gods are angry with us this day, and blowing arrows at\nus. They will kill you both! Hurry!\u201d A big puff of wind was blowing\nover, scattering slivers and straws before it; that was all!\n\n\u201cBrother,\u201d said the elder, \u201cthis will not do. These people must be\nhardened and be taught to eat. But let us take a little sleep first,\nthen we will look to this.\u201d\n\nThey propped themselves up against a wall, set their shields in front of\nthem, and fell asleep. Not long after they awakened suddenly. Those\nstrange people were trying to drag them out to bury them, but were\nafraid to touch them now, for they thought them dead stuff, more dead\nthan alive.\n\nThe younger brother punched the elder with his elbow, and both pretended\nto gasp, then kept very still. The people succeeded at last in rolling\nthem out of the court like spoiling bodies, and were about to mingle\nthem with the refuse when they suddenly let go and set up a great wail,\nshouting \u201cWar! Murder!\u201d\n\n\u201cHow now?\u201d cried the Twain, jumping up. Whereupon the people stared and\nchattered in greater fright than ever at seeing the dead seemingly come\nto life!\n\n\u201cWhat\u2019s the matter, you fool people?\u201d\n\n\u201c_Akaa kaa_,\u201d cried a flock of jays.\n\n\u201cHear that!\u201d said the villagers. \u201cHear that, and ask what\u2019s the matter!\nThe jays are coming; whoever they light on dies--run you two! _Aii!_\nMurder!\u201d And they left off their standing as though chased by demons. On\none or two of the hindmost some jays alighted. They fell dead as though\nstruck by lightning!\n\n\u201cWhy, see that!\u201d cried the elder brother--\u201cthese people die if only\nbirds alight on them!\u201d\n\n\u201cHold on, there!\u201d said the younger brother. \u201cLook here, you fearsome\nthings!\u201d So they pulled hairs from some scalp-locks they had, and made\nsnares of them, and whenever the jays flew at them they caught them with\nthe nooses until they had caught every one. Then they pinched them dead\nand took them into the town and roasted them. \u201cThis is the way,\u201d said\nthey, as they ate the jays by morsels.\n\nAnd the people crowded around and shouted: \u201cLook! look! why, they eat\nthe very enemy--say nothing of refuse!\u201d And although they dreaded the\ncouple, they became very conciliatory and gave them a fit place to bide\nin.\n\nThe very next day there was another alarm. The Two ran out to learn what\nwas the matter. For a long time they could see nothing, but at last they\nmet some people fleeing into the town. Chasing after them was a\ncooking-pot with earrings of onions.[34] It was boiling furiously and\nbelching forth hot wind and steam and spluttering mush in every\ndirection. If ever so little of the mush hit the people they fell over\nand died.\n\n [34] The onion here referred to is the dried, southwestern\n leek-clove, which is so strong and indigestible that, when eaten\n raw and in quantity, gives rise to great distress, or actually\n proves fatal to any but mature and vigorous persons. This, of\n course, explains why it was chosen for its value as a symbol of\n the vigor (or \u201cdaylight perfection\u201d and invincibility) of the\n Twin gods.\n\n\u201c_He!_\u201d cried the Twain;\n\n \u201c_T\u00e9-k\u2019ya-thla-k\u2019ya\n \u00cd-ta-wa-k\u2019ya\n \u00c4sh\u2032-she-shu-kwa!_\n\n--As if food-stuff were made to make people afraid!\u201d Whereupon they\ntwitched the earrings off the pot and ate them up with all the mush that\nwas in the pot, which they forthwith kicked to pieces vigorously.\n\nThen the people crowded still closer around them, wondering to one\nanother that they could vanquish all enemies by eating them with such\nimpunity, and they begged the Twain to teach them how to do it. So they\ngathered a great council of the villagers, and when they found that\nthese poor people were only half finished, ... they cut vents in them\n(such as were not afraid to let them), ... and made them eat solid food,\nby means of which they were hardened and became men of meat then and\nthere, instead of having to get killed after the manner of the fearful,\nand others of their kind beforetime, in order to ascend to the daylight\nand take their places in men born of men.\n\nAnd for this reason, behold! a new-born child may eat only of wind-stuff\nuntil his cord of viewless sustenance has been severed, and then only by\nsucking milk or soft food first and with much distress.\n\nBehold! And we may now see why, like new-born children are the very\naged; childish withal--_\u00e1-ya-vwi_[35];--not only toothless, too, but\nalso sure to die of diarrh\u0153a if they eat ever so little save the soft\nparts and broths of cooked food. For are not the babes new-come from the\n_Shi-u-na_[36] world; and are not the aged about to enter the\n_Shi-po-lo-a_[37] world, where cooked food unconsumed is never heeded by\nthe fully dead?\n\n [35] Dangerously susceptible, tender, delicate.\n\n [36] Hazy, steam-growing.\n\n [37] Mist-enshrouded.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COCK AND THE MOUSE\n\n\nNOTE.--While on their pilgrimage to the \u201cOcean of Sunrise\u201d in the\nsummer of 1886, three Zu\u00f1is--P\u00e1lowahtiwa, Wa\u00edhusiwa, and H\u00e9luta--with\nMr. Cushing, were entertaining their assembled friends at\nManchester-by-the-Sea with folk tales, those related by the Indians\nbeing interpreted by Mr. Cushing as they were uttered. When Mr.\nCushing\u2019s turn came for a story he responded by relating the Italian\ntale of \u201cThe Cock and the Mouse\u201d which appears in Thomas Frederick\nCrane\u2019s _Italian Popular Tales_. About a year later, at Zu\u00f1i, but\nunder somewhat similar circumstances, Wa\u00edhusiwa\u2019s time came to\nentertain the gathering, and great was Mr. Cushing\u2019s surprise when he\npresented a Zu\u00f1i version of the Italian tale. Mr. Cushing translated\nthe story as literally as possible, and it is here reproduced,\ntogether with Mr. Crane\u2019s translation from the Italian, in order that\nthe reader may not only see what transformation the original underwent\nin such a brief period, and how well it has been adapted to Zu\u00f1i\nenvironment and mode of thought, but also to give a glimpse of the\nIndian method of folk-tale making.--_Editor._\n\n\nITALIAN VERSION\n\nOnce upon a time there were a cock and a mouse. One day the mouse said\nto the cock: \u201cFriend Cock, shall we go and eat some nuts on yonder\ntree?\u201d \u201cAs you like.\u201d So they both went under the tree and the mouse\nclimbed up at once and began to eat. The poor cock began to fly, and\nflew and flew, but could not come where the mouse was. When it saw that\nthere was no hope of getting there, it said: \u201cFriend Mouse, do you know\nwhat I want you to do? Throw me a nut.\u201d The mouse went and threw one and\nhit the cock on the head. The poor cock, with its head all broken and\ncovered with blood, went away to an old woman. \u201cOld aunt, give me some\nrags to cure my head.\u201d \u201cIf you will give me two hairs I will give you\nthe rags.\u201d The cock went away to a dog. \u201cDog, give me two hairs; the\nhairs I will give the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to cure\nmy head.\u201d \u201cIf you will give me a little bread,\u201d said the dog, \u201cI will\ngive you the hairs.\u201d The cock went away to a baker. \u201cBaker, give me\nbread; I will give bread to the dog; the dog will give hairs; the hairs\nI will carry to the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to cure\nmy head.\u201d The baker answered: \u201cI will not give you bread unless you give\nme some wood.\u201d The cock went away to the forest. \u201cForest, give me some\nwood; the wood I will carry to the baker; the baker will give me some\nbread; the bread I will give to the dog; the dog will give me hairs; the\nhairs I will carry to the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to\ncure my head.\u201d The forest answered: \u201cIf you will bring me a little\nwater, I will give you some wood.\u201d The cock went away to a fountain.\n\u201cFountain, give me water; water I will carry to the forest; forest will\ngive wood; wood I will carry to the baker; baker will give bread; bread\nI will give dog; dog will give hairs; hairs I will give old woman; old\nwoman will give rags to cure my head.\u201d The fountain gave him water; the\nwater he carried to the forest; the forest gave him wood; the wood he\ncarried to the baker; the baker gave him bread; the bread he gave to the\ndog; the dog gave him the hairs; the hairs he carried to the old woman;\nthe old woman gave him the rags; and the cock cured his head.\n\n\nZU\u00d1I VERSION\n\nThus it was in the Town of the Floods Abounding,[38] long ago. There\nlived there an old woman, so they say, of the _Italia-kwe_,[39] who, in\nthe land of their nativity, are the parental brothers of the Mexicans,\nit is said. Now, after the manner of that people, this old woman had a\n_T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ Cock which she kept alone so that he would not fight the\nothers. He was very large, like a turkey, with a fine sleek head and a\nbristle-brush on his breast like a turkey-cock\u2019s too, for the\n_T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_-kind were at first the younger brothers of the Turkeys, so it\nwould seem.\n\n [38] Venice.\n\n [39] \u201cItaly-people.\u201d\n\nWell, the old woman kept her Cock in a little corral of tall close-set\nstakes, sharp at the top and wattled together with rawhide thongs, like\nan eagle-cage against a wall, only it had a little wicket also fastened\nwith thongs. Now, try as he would, the old _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ Cock could not fly\nout, for he had no chance to run and make a start as turkeys do in the\nwilds, yet he was ever trying and trying, because he was\nmeat-hungry--always anxious for worms;--for, although the people of that\nvillage had abundant food, this old woman was poor and lived mainly on\ngrain-foods, wherefore, perforce, she fed the old _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ Cock with the\nrefuse of her own eatings. In the morning the old woman would come and\nthrow this refuse food into the corral cage.\n\nUnder the wall near by there lived a Mouse. He had no old grandmother to\nfeed him, and he was particularly fond of grain food. When, having\neaten his fill, the old Cock would settle down, stiff of neck and not\nlooking this side nor that, but sitting in the sun _k\u00e2-t\u00e2-k\u00e2-tok-ing_ to\nhimself, the little Mouse would dodge out, steal a bit of tortilla or a\ncrumb, and whisk into his hole again. Being sleepy, the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ Cock\nnever saw him, and so, day after day the Mouse fared sumptuously and\ngrew over-bold. But one day, when corn was ripe and the Cock had been\nwell fed and was settling down to his sitting nap, the Mouse came out\nand stole a particularly large piece of bread, so that in trying to push\nit into his hole he made some noise and, moreover, had to stop and\ntunnel his doorway larger.\n\nThe Cock turned his head and looked just as the Mouse was working his\nway slowly in, and espied the long, naked tail lying there on the ground\nand wriggling as the Mouse moved to and fro at his digging.\n\n\u201cHah! By the Grandmother of Substance, it is a worm!\u201d cackled the Cock,\nand he made one peck at the Mouse\u2019s tail and bit it so hard that he cut\nit entirely off and swallowed it at one gulp.\n\nThe Mouse, squeaking \u201cMurder!\u201d scurried down into his sleeping-place,\nand fell to licking his tail until his chops were all pink and his mouth\nwas drawn down like a crying woman\u2019s; for he loved his long tail as a\nyoung dancer loves the glory of his long hair, and he cried continually:\n\u201c_Weh tsu tsu, weh tsu tse, yam hok ti-i-i!_\u201d and thought: \u201cOh, that\nshameless great beast! By the Demon of Slave-creatures, I\u2019ll have my\npayment of him! For he is worse than an owl or a night-hawk. They eat\nus all up, but he has taken away the very mark of my mousehood and left\nme to mourn it. I\u2019ll take vengeance on him, will I!\u201d\n\nSo, from that time the Mouse thought how he might compass it, and this\nplan seemed best: He would creep out some day, all maimed of tail as he\nwas, and implore pity, and thus, perchance, make friends for a while\nwith the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ Cock. So he took seed-down, and made a plaster of it\nwith nut-resin, and applied it to the stump of his tail. Then, on a\nmorning, holding his tail up as a dog does his foot when maimed by a\ncactus, he crawled to the edge of his hole and cried in a weak voice to\nthe _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_:\n\n \u201c_Ani, yoa yoa! It\u00e2-ak\u2019ya Mosa,\n Motcho wak\u2019ya,\n Oshe wak\u2019ya,\n Ethl h\u00e2 asha ni ha. Ha na, yoa, ha na!_\u201d\n\n Look you, pity, pity! Master of Food Substance,\n Of my maiming,\n Of my hunger,\n I am all but dying. Ah me, pity, ah me!\n\nWhereupon he held up his tail, which was a safe thing to do, you see,\nfor it no longer looked like a worm or any other eatable.\n\nNow, the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ was flattered to be called a master of plenty, so he\nsaid, quite haughtily (for he had eaten and could not bend his neck, and\nfelt proud, withal), \u201cCome in, you poor little thing, and eat all you\nwant. As if I cared for what the like of you could eat!\u201d So the Mouse\nwent in and ate very little, as became a polite stranger, and thanking\nthe Cock, bade him good-day and went back to his hole.\n\nBy-and-by he came again, and this time he brought part of a nutshell\ncontaining fine white meat. When he had shouted warning of his coming\nand entered the corral cage, he said: \u201cComrade father, let us eat\ntogether. Of this food I have plenty, gathered from yonder high nut-tree\nwhich I climb every autumn when the corn is ripe and cut the nuts\ntherefrom. But of all food yours I most relish, since I cannot store\nsuch in my cellar. Now, it may be you will equally relish mine; so let\nus eat, then, together.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well, comrade child,\u201d replied the Cock; so they began to eat.\n\nBut the Cock had no sooner tasted the nut than he fairly chuckled for\njoy, and having speedily made an end of the kernel, fell to lamenting\nhis hard lot. \u201cAlas, ah me!\u201d he said. \u201cMy grandmother brings me, on rare\ndays, something like to this, but picked all too clean. There is nought\neatable so nice. Comrade little one, do you have plenty of this kind,\ndid you say?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d replied the Mouse; \u201cbut, you see, the season is near to an\nend now, and when I want more nuts I must go and gather them from the\ntree. Look, now! Why do you not go there also? That is the tree, close\nby.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh me, I cannot escape, woe to me! Look at my wings,\u201d said the Cock,\n\u201cthey are worn to bristles--and as to the beard on my breast, my chief\nornament, alas! it is all crumpled and uneven, so much have I tried to\nfly out and so hard have I pushed against the bars. As for the door, my\ngrandmother claps that shut and fastens it tightly with thongs, be you\nsure, as soon as ever she finishes the feeding of me!\u201d\n\n\u201cHa! ha!\u201d exclaimed the Mouse. \u201cIf that\u2019s all, there\u2019s nothing easier\nthan to open that. Look at my teeth; I even crack the hard nuts with\nthese scrapers of mine! Wait!\u201d He ran nimbly up the wicket and soon\ngnawed through the holding-string. \u201cThere! comrade father; push open the\ndoor, you are bigger than I, and we will go nutting.\u201d\n\n\u201cThanks this day,\u201d cried the Cock, and shoving the wicket open, he ran\nforth cackling and crowing for gladness.\n\nThen the Mouse led the way to the tree. Up the trunk he ran, and climbed\nand climbed until he came to the topmost boughs. \u201cHa! the nuts are fine\nand ripe up here,\u201d he shouted.\n\nBut the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ fluttered and flew all in vain; his wings were so worn\nhe could not win even to the lowermost branches. \u201cOh! have pity on me,\ncomrade child! Cut off some of the nuts and throw them down to me, do!\nMy wings are so worn I cannot fly any better than the grandmother\u2019s old\ndog, who is my neighbor over there.\u201d\n\n\u201cBe patient, be patient, father!\u201d exclaimed the Mouse. \u201cI am cracking a\nbig one for you as fast as I can. There, catch it!\u201d and he threw a fat\nnut close to the Cock, who gleefully devoured the kernel and, without so\nmuch as thanks, called for more.\n\n\u201cWait, father,\u201d said the Mouse. \u201cThere! Stand right under me, so. Now,\ncatch it; this is a big one!\u201d Saying which the Mouse crawled out until\nhe was straight over the Cock. \u201cNow, then,\u201d said he, \u201cwatch in front!\u201d\nand he let fall the nut. It hit the Cock on the head so hard that it\nbruised the skin off and stunned the old _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ so that he fell over\nand died for a short time, utterly forgetting.\n\n\u201c_T\u00e9 mi thlo k\u00f4 thlo kwa!_\u201d shouted the Mouse, as he hurried down the\ntree. \u201cA little waiting, and lo! What my foe would do to me, I to him\ndo, indeed!\u201d Whereupon he ran across, before ever the Cock had opened an\neye, and gnawed his bristles off so short that they never could grow\nagain. \u201cThere, now!\u201d said the Mouse. \u201cLo! thus healed is my heart, and\nmy enemy is even as he made me, bereft of distinction!\u201d Then he ran back\nto his cellar, satisfied.\n\nFinally the Cock opened his eyes. \u201cAh me, my head!\u201d he exclaimed. Then,\nmoaning, he staggered to his feet, and in doing so he espied the nut. It\nwas smooth and round, like a brown egg. When the Cock saw it he fell to\nlamenting more loudly than ever: \u201cOh, my head! _T\u00e2-k\u00e2-k\u00e2-k\u00e2-\u00e2-\u00e2!_\u201d But\nthe top of his head kept bleeding and swelling until it was all covered\nover with welts of gore, and it grew so heavy, withal, that the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_\nthought he would surely die. So off to his grandmother he went,\nlamenting all the way.\n\nHearing him, the grandmother opened the door, and cried: \u201cWhat now?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, my grandmother, ah me! I am murdered!\u201d he answered. \u201cA great,\nround, hard seed was dropped on my head by a little creature with a\nshort, one-feathered tail, who came and told me that it was good to eat\nand--oh! my head is all bleeding and swollen! By the light of your\nfavor, bind my wound for me lest, alas, I die!\u201d\n\n\u201cServed you right! Why did you leave your place, knowing better?\u201d cried\nthe old woman. \u201cI will not bind your head unless you give me your very\nbristles of manhood, that you may remember your lesson!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! take them, grandmother!\u201d cried the Cock; but when he looked down,\nalas! the beard of his breast, the glory of his kind, was all gone. \u201cAh\nme! ah me! What shall I do?\u201d he again cried. But the old woman told him\nthat unless he brought her at least four bristles she would not cure\nhim, and forthwith she shut the door.\n\nSo the poor Cock slowly staggered back toward his corral, hoping to find\nsome of the hairs that had been gnawed off. As he passed the little\nlodge of his neighbor, the Dog, he caught sight of old _Wahtsita\u2019s_ fine\nmuzzle-beard. \u201cHa!\u201d thought he. Then he told the Dog his tale, and\nbegged of him four hairs--\u201conly four!\u201d\n\n\u201cYou great, pampered noise-maker, give me some bread, then, fine bread,\nand I will give you the hairs.\u201d Whereupon the Cock thought, and went to\nthe house of a Trader of Foodstuffs; and he told him also the tale.\n\n\u201cWell, then, bring me some wood with which I may heat the oven to bake\nthe bread,\u201d said the Trader of Foodstuffs.\n\nThe Cock went to some Woods near by. \u201cOh, ye Beloved of the Trees, drop\nme dry branches!\u201d And with this he told the Trees his tale; but the\nTrees shook their leaves and said: \u201cNo rain has fallen, and all our\nbranches will soon be dry. Beseech the Waters that they give us drink,\nthen we will gladly give you wood.\u201d\n\nThen the Cock went to a Spring near by,--and when he saw in it how his\nhead was swollen and he found that it was growing harder, he again began\nto lament.\n\n\u201cWhat matters?\u201d murmured the Beloved of the Waters.\n\nThen he told them the tale also.\n\n\u201cListen!\u201d said the Beings of Water. \u201cLong have men neglected their\nduties, and the Beloved of the Clouds need payment of due no less than\nourselves, the Trees, the Food-maker, the Dog, and the Old Woman.\nBehold! no plumes are set about our border! Now, therefore, pay to them\nof thy feathers--four floating plumes from under thy wings--and set them\nclose over us, that, seen in our depths from the sky, they will lure the\nBeloved of the Clouds with their rain-laden breaths. Thus will our\nstream-way be replenished and the Trees watered, and their Winds in the\nTrees will drop thee dead branches wherewith thou mayest make payment\nand all will be well.\u201d\n\nForthwith the _T\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ plucked four of his best plumes and set them, one\non the northern, one on the western, one on the southern, and one on the\neastern border of the Pool. Then the Winds of the Four Quarters began to\nbreathe upon the four plumes, and with those Breaths of the Beloved came\nClouds, and from the Clouds fell Rain, and the Trees threw down dry\nbranches, and the Wind placed among them Red-top Grass, which is light\nand therefore lightens the load it is among. And when the Cock returned\nand gathered a little bundle of fagots, lo! the Red-top made it so light\nthat he easily carried it to the Food-maker, who gave him bread, for\nwhich the Dog gave him four bristles, and these he took to the old\nGrandmother.\n\n\u201cHa!\u201d exclaimed she. \u201cNow, child, I will cure thee, but thou hast been\nso long that thy head will always be welted and covered with\nproud-flesh, even though healed. Still, it must ever be so. Doing right\nkeeps right; doing wrong makes wrong, which, to make right, one must\neven pay as the sick pay those who cure them. Go now, and bide whither I\nbid thee.\u201d\n\nWhen, after a time, the Cock became well, lo! there were great, flabby,\nblood-red welts on his head and blue marks on his temples where they\nwere bruised so sore. Now, listen:\n\nIt is for this reason that ever since that time the medicine masters of\nthat people never give cure without pay; never, for there is no virtue\nin medicine of no value. Ever since then cocks have had no bristles on\ntheir breasts--only little humps where they ought to be;--and they\nalways have blood-red crests of meat on their heads. And even when a hen\nlays an egg and a _t\u00e2k\u00e2k\u00e2_ cock sees it, he begins to _t\u00e2-k\u00e2-k\u00e2-\u00e2_ as\nthe ancient of them all did when he saw the brown nut. And sometimes\nthey even pick at and eat these seeds of their own children, especially\nwhen they are cracked.\n\nAs for mice, we know how they went into the meal-bags in olden times and\ncame out something else, and, getting smoked, became _tsothliko-ah\u00e2i_,\nwith long, bare tails. But that was before the Cock cut the tail of the\n_tsothliko_ Mouse off. Ever since he cried in agony: \u201c_Weh tsu yii weh\ntsu!_\u201d like a child with a burnt finger, his children have been called\n_Wehtsutsukwe_, and wander wild in the fields; hence field-mice to this\nday have short tails, brown-stained and hairy; and their chops are all\npink, and when you look them in the face they seem always to be crying.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n\n\nTHE GIANT CLOUD-SWALLOWER\n\nA TALE OF CA\u00d1ON DE CHELLY\n\n\nTRANSLATOR\u2019S INTRODUCTION\n\nDeep down in ca\u00f1ons of the Southwest, especially where they are joined\nby other ca\u00f1ons, the traveller may see standing forth from or hugging\nthe angles of the cliffs, great towering needles of stone--weird,\nrugged, fantastic, oftentimes single, as often--like gigantic\nwind-stripped trees with lesser trees standing beside them--double or\ntreble. Seen suddenly at a turn in the ca\u00f1on these giant stones startle\nthe gazer with their monstrous and human proportions, like giants,\nindeed, at bay against the sheer rock walls, protecting their young, who\nappear anon to crouch at the knees of their fathers or cling to their\nsides.\n\nFew white men behold these statuesque stones in the moonlight, or in the\ngray light and white mists of the morning. At midday they seem dead or\nasleep while standing; but when the moon is shining above them and the\nwanderer below looks up to them, lo! the moon stands still and these\nmighty crags start forth, advancing noiselessly. His back is frozen, and\neven in the yielding sand his feet are held fast by terror--a delicious,\nghostly terror, withal! Still he gazes fascinated, and as the shadow of\nthe moonlight falls toward him over the topmost crest, lo, again! its\ncrown is illumined and circled as if by a halo of snow-light, and back\nand forth from this luminous fillet over that high stony brow, black\nhair seems to tumble and gather.\n\nAgain, beheld in the dawn-light, when the mists are rising slowly and\nare waving to and fro around the giddy columns, hiding the cliffs\nbehind them, these vast pinnacles seem to nod and to waver or to sway\nthemselves backward and forward, all as silently as before. Soon, when\nthe sun is risen and the mists from below fade away, the wind blows more\nmist from the mesa; you see clouds of it pour from the cliff edge, just\nbehind and above these great towers, and shimmer against the bright sky;\nbut as soon as these clouds pass the crag-nests they are lost in the\nsunlight around them--lost so fast, as yet others come on, that the\nstone giants seem to drink them.\n\nOf such rocks, according to their variety and local surroundings, the\nZu\u00f1is relate many tales which are so ingenious and befitting that if we\nbelieved, as the Zu\u00f1is do, that in the time of creation when all things\nwere young and soft and were therefore easily fashioned by whatever\nchanced to befall them--into this thing or that thing, into this plant\nor that plant, this animal or that, and so on endlessly through a\ndramatic story longer than Shakespeare or the Bible--we would fain\nbelieve also as he does in the quaint incidents of these stories of the\ntime when all things were new and the world was becoming as we see it\nnow.\n\nOne of these tales, a variant of others pertaining to particular\nstanding rocks in the west, south, or east, is told of that wonder to\nall beholders, \u201cEl Capitan,\u201d of the Ca\u00f1on de Chelly in the north. No one\nwho has seen this stupendous rock column can fail to be interested in\nthe following legend, or will fail to realize how, as this introduction\nendeavors to make plainer, the Zu\u00f1i poet and philosopher of olden times\nbuilt up a story which he verily believed quite sufficient to account\nfor the great shaft of sandstone and its many details and\nsurroundings.--F. H. C.\n\n\nH\u00e4ki Suto, or Foretop Knot, he whose hair was done up over his forehead\nlike a quail\u2019s crest, lived among the great cliffs of the north long\nago, when the world was new. He was a giant, so tall that men called\nhim _Lo Ikwithltchunona_, or the Cloud-swallower. A devourer of men was\nhe,--men were his meat--yea, and a drinker of their very substance was\nhe, for the cloud-breaths of the beloved gods, and souls of the dead,\nwhence descend rains, even these were his drink. Wherefore the People of\nthe Cliffs sought to slay him, and hero after hero perished thuswise.\nWherefore, too, snow ceased in the north and the west; rain ceased in\nthe south and the east; the mists of the mountains above were drunk up;\nthe waters of the valleys below were dried up; corn withered in the\nfields; men hungered and died in the cliffs.\n\nThen came the Twin Gods of War, \u00c1haiy\u00fata and M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, who in play\nstaked the lives of foes and fierce creatures. \u201cLo! it is not well with\nour children, men,\u201d said they. \u201cLet us destroy this H\u00e4ki Suto, the\nswallower of clouds,\u201d said they.\n\nThey were walking along the trail which leads southward to the\nSmooth-rocks-descending.\n\n\u201cO, grandchildren, where be ye wending?\u201d said a little, little quavering\nvoice. They looked,--the younger, then the elder. There on the tip of a\ngrass-stalk, waving her banner of down-stuff, stood their grandmother,\nSpinner of Meshes.\n\n\u201cThe Spider! Our Grandmother Spider!\u201d cried one of the gods to the\nother. \u201cHo! grandmother, was that you calling?\u201d shouted they to her.\n\n\u201cYea, children; where wend ye this noon-day?\u201d\n\n\u201cA-warring we are going,\u201d said they. \u201cLook now!\n\n \u201cNo beads for to broider your awning\n Have fallen this many a morning.\u201d\n\n\u201cAha, wait ye! Whom ye seek, verily I know him well,\u201d said the\nSpider-woman.\n\n \u201cLike a tree fallen down from the mountain\n He lies by the side of the cliff-trail\n And feigns to sleep there, yet is wary.\n I will sew up his eyes with my down-cords.\n Then come ye and smite him, grandchildren.\u201d\n\nShe ran ahead. There lay H\u00e4ki Suto, his legs over the trail where men\njourneyed. Great, like the trunks and branches of pine trees cast down\nby a wind-storm, were his legs arching over the pathway, and when some\none chanced to come by, the giant would call out: \u201cGood morning!\u201d and\nbid him \u201cpass right along under.\u201d \u201cI am old and rheumatic,\u201d he would\ncontinue, oh, so politely! \u201cDo not mind my rudeness, therefore; run\nright along under; never fear, run right along under!\u201d But when the\nhunter tried to pass, _k\u00fautsu!_ H\u00e4ki Suto would snatch him up and cast\nhim over the cliff to be eaten by the young Forehead-cresters.\n\nThe Spider stepped never so lightly, and climbed up behind his great\near, and then busily wove at her web, to and fro, up and down, and in\nand out of his eyelashes she busily plied at her web.\n\n\u201cPesk the birds and buzz creatures!\u201d growled the giant, twitching this\nway and that his eyebrows, which tickled; but he would not stir,--for he\nheard the War-gods coming, and thought them fat hunters and needs must\nfeign sleepy.\n\nAnd these? Ha! ha! They begin to sing, as was their fearless wont\nsometimes. H\u00e4ki Suto never looked, but yawned and drawled as they came\nnear, and nearer. \u201cNever mind, my children, pass right along under, pass\nright along under; I am lame and tired this morning,\u201d said he.\n\n\u00c1haiy\u00fata ran to the left. M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma ran to the right. H\u00e4ki Suto sprang\nup to catch them, but his eyes were so blinded with cobwebs that he\nmissed them and feigned to fall, crying: \u201cOuch! my poor back! my poor\nback! Pass right along under, my children, it was only a crick in my\nback. Ouch! Oh, my poor back!\u201d But they whacked him over the head and\nstomach till he stiffened and died. Then shouting \u201c_So ho!_\u201d they shoved\nhim over the cliff.\n\nThe Navahos say that the grandmother tied him there by the hair--by his\ntop-knot--where you see the white streaks on the pillar, so _they_ say;\nbut it\u2019s the birds that streak the pillar, and _this_ is the way. When\nH\u00e4ki Suto fell, his feet drave far into the sands, and the Storm-gods\nrushed in to the aid of their children, the War-gods, and drifted his\nblood-bedrenched carcass all over with sand, whence he dried and\nhardened to stone. When the young ones saw him falling, they forthwith\nflocked up to devour him, making loud clamor. But the Twain, seeing\nthis, made after them too and twisted the necks of all save only the\ntallest (who was caught in the sands with his father) and flung them\naloft to the winds, whereby one became instantly the Owl, who twists her\nhead wholly around whensoever she pleases, and stares as though\nfrightened and strangled; and another the Falcon became, who perches\nand nests to this day on the crest of his sand-covered father, the Giant\nCloud-drinker. And the Falcons cry ever and ever \u201c\u2019Tis father; O\nfather!\u201d (\u201c_T\u00ed-t\u00e4tchu ya-t\u00e4tchu._\u201d)\n\nBut, fearing that never again would the waters refreshen their ca\u00f1ons,\nour ancients who dwelt in the cliffs fled away to the southward and\neastward--all save those who had perished aforetime; they are dead in\ntheir homes in the cliff-towns, dried, like their corn-stalks that died\nwhen the rain stopped long, long ago, when all things were new.\n\nThus shortens my story.\n\n\n [Illustration: ZU\u00d1I WOMEN CARRYING WATER\n Photo by A. C. Vroman]\n\n\n\n\nTHE MAIDEN THE SUN MADE LOVE TO, AND HER BOYS\n\nOR, THE ORIGIN OF ANGER\n\n\nLet it be about a person who lived in the Home of the Eagles (K\u2019i\u00e1kime),\nunder the Mountain of Thunder, that I tell you today. So let it be. It\nwas in the ancient, long-forgotten times. It was in the very ancient\ntimes beyond one\u2019s guessing. There lived then, in this town, the\ndaughter of a great priest-chief, but she had never, never, never since\nshe was a little child, come forth from the doorway of the house in\nwhich she dwelt. No one there in that town had ever seen her; even her\nown townspeople had never seen her.\n\nNow, day after day at noon-time, when the Sun stood in the mid-heavens,\nhe would look down from the sky through a little window in the roof of\nher house. And he it was who instant was her lover, and who, descending\nupon the luminously yellow trail his own rays created, would talk to\nher. And he was her only companion, for she knew not her own\ntownspeople, neither had she seen them since she was a child. None save\nonly her parents ever saw her.\n\n\u201cWonder what the cacique\u2019s child looks like,\u201d the people would say to\none another. \u201cShe never comes out; no one has seen her since she was a\nlittle child.\u201d And so at last they schemed to get a look at her. One\nsaid: \u201cI have it! Let us have a dance for her. Then it may be she will\ndeign to come forth.\u201d\n\nThe young man who spoke was chief of the dances, and why should he not\nsuggest such a thing? So, his friends and followers agreeing, they began\nto make plumes of macaw feathers--beautiful plumes they were--for the\nPlume dance. They set a day, and on that day, in the morning, they\ndanced, with music and song, in the plaza before the house of the great\npriest-chief where the girl lived. They looked along the top of the\nhouse in vain; the girl was not there; only her old parents sat on the\nroof.\n\n\u201cOh! I\u2019m so thirsty!\u201d cried the chief of the dance, for he it was who\nwanted to see the girl.\n\n\u201cRun right in and get a drink,\u201d said the girl\u2019s old ones. So the young\nman climbed the ladder and went into the first room. There was no water\nthere; then he went into the second room, but there was no water there;\nthen into the third room, but still he found no water. He looked all\naround, but saw nothing of the priest-chief\u2019s daughter. All the same,\nshe was back in the fourth room, sitting there just as if no dance were\ngoing on in the plaza, weaving away at her beautiful trays of colored\nsplints.\n\nWell, the young man went back; they finished their dance, but no one saw\nanything of the priest-chief\u2019s daughter; and when the dancers all\nreturned to their ceremonial chamber they said to one another: \u201cAlas!\nalthough we danced for her, she came not out to see us!\u201d\n\nNow, in reality, the Sun, who was her lover, and came down each day on a\nray of his own light to visit her, loved her so much he would not that\nshe should come forth from her house and be seen of men. Therefore he\nset an Eagle upon the house-top in a great cage to watch her. He was a\nvery wise old Eagle. He could understand every word that the people\nsaid. And he it was that she fed and watered from day to day. Now, the\ndancers in the ceremonial chamber asked: \u201cWhat shall we do?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, let us dance again,\u201d said the chief of the dances, \u201cand if we do\nnot succeed, yet again.\u201d They did as he said, but with no better success\nthan before; so at last the two Warrior Priests of the Bow grew angry,\nand although they were the girl\u2019s father\u2019s own warriors, they ordered\nthe Warrior festival, or _\u00d3inahe_ dance. \u201cSurely,\u201d said they, \u201cshe will\ncome forth, and if not, let her perish, for how can she refuse the\ndelight of the great _\u00d3inahe_, where each young man dances and masks\nhimself according to his fancy?\u201d\n\nSo, one night the two warriors went out and called to the people to make\nready and be happy, for in four days they should dance the _\u00d3inahe_.\nWhen they had done calling, they descended, and the people said to one\nanother: \u201cSurely she will come out when we dance the _\u00d3inahe_, for she\nwill be delighted with it, and we shall yet see her. She was very\nbeautiful when she was a little girl.\u201d Then both of the warriors\nclimbed to the top of Thunder Mountain, where \u00c1haiy\u00fata and his brother,\nM\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, the Gods of War, and their grandmother lived in the middle\nof the summit. As they approached the presence of the two gods, they\nexclaimed: \u201c_She-e!_\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hai!_\u201d the gods replied.\n\n\u201cOur fathers, how is it that ye are, these many days?\u201d they asked, and\nthe Twain replied: \u201cWe are happy. Come in; sit down\u201d; and they placed a\ncouple of stools for the warriors. \u201cWhat is it that ye would of us?\u201d\nthey continued; \u201cfor it would be strange if ye came up to our house for\nnothing.\u201d\n\n\u201cTrue it is,\u201d replied the warriors. \u201cIt is in our hearts as your two\nchosen children--as the war-priests of our nation--that our people\nshould be made happy as the days of the year go by; and we therefore\nthink over all the beautiful dances, and now and then command that the\nmost fitting of them shall appear. Now, our children, the people of the\nHome of the Eagles, are anxious to see our child, the daughter of the\npriest-chief, who has not come forth from her house, and whom we have\nnever seen since she was a little girl. We have thought to order your\ndance of the _\u00d3inahe_, and we would that without fail our daughter\nshould be made to come forth or else die; therefore, our fathers, we\nhave come to consult ye and to ask your advice.\u201d\n\n\u201cAha!\u201d cried the Twain. \u201cThen ye are anxious that this should be, are\nye?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d they replied.\n\n\u201cWell, it shall come to pass as ye wish it, and the girl must die if she\ncome not forth at the bidding of the _\u00d3inahe_!\u201d\n\n\u201cAha!\u201d ejaculated they both. \u201cThanks!\u201d\n\n\u201cYea, it shall be as ye wish. Make our days for us--name the times for\npreparation, and we shall be with ye to lead the _\u00d3inahe_. The first\ntime our dance will come forth, and the second time our dance will come\nforth, and the third time our dance will come forth, but the fourth time\nour dance comes forth, it will happen as ye wish it. It will certainly\nbe finished as ye wish it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell! Thanks; we go!\u201d (good-by).\n\n\u201cGo ye,\u201d said the gods to their children; and they went.\n\nThe Eagle was very unhappy with all this. He knew it all, for he\nunderstood everything that was said. Next morning he hung his head at\nthe window with great sadness; so the girl, after she had eaten her\nmorning meal, took some dainty bits to the window and said: \u201cWhy are you\nso unhappy? See, I have brought you some food. Eat!\u201d\n\n\u201cI will not eat; I cannot eat,\u201d replied the Eagle.\n\n\u201cWhy not?\u201d asked she. \u201cI will not harm you; I am happy; I love you just\nas much as ever.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas, alas! my mother,\u201d said the Eagle. \u201cIt is not with thoughts of\nmyself that I am unhappy, but your father\u2019s two war-priests are anxious\nthat their children shall be made happy, and their children, the people\nof our town under the mountain, are longing to see you. They have said\nto one another that you never come forth; they have never seen you.\nTherefore they have ordered the _\u00d3inahe_, that you may be tempted out.\nThey went up to the home of \u00c1haiy\u00fata and his younger brother, where they\nlive with their grandmother, on the top of Thunder Mountain, and the two\ngods have said to them: \u2018It shall come to pass as ye wish it.\u2019 Therefore\nthey will dance, and on the fourth day of their dancing it shall come to\npass as they wish it. Indeed, it shall happen, my poor mother, that you\nshall be no more. Alas! I can do nothing; you can do nothing; why should\nI tarry longer with you? You must loosen my bonds and let me free.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs you like,\u201d said the girl. \u201cI suppose it must be as you say.\u201d Then\nshe loosened the Eagle\u2019s bonds, and, straight as the pathway of an\narrow, away he flew upward into the sky--even toward the zenith where\nthe Sun rested at noon-time, and whither he soon arrived himself.\n\n\u201cThou comest,\u201d said the Sun.\n\n\u201cI do, my father. How art thou these many days?\u201d said the Eagle to the\nSun.\n\n\u201cHappy. Here, sit down.\u201d There was a blanket already placed for him, and\nthereupon he sat; but he never looked to the right nor to the left, nor\nyet about the Sun-father\u2019s splendid home. He said not a word. He only\ndrooped his head, so sad was he.\n\n\u201cWhat is it, my child?\u201d asked the Sun. \u201cI suppose thou hast some\nerrand, else why shouldst thou come? Surely it is not for nothing that\nthou wouldst come so far to see me.\u201d\n\n\u201cQuite true,\u201d answered the Eagle. \u201cAlas! my child; alas, my mother! Day\nafter day down in the home under the mountain the people dance that they\nmay tempt her forth; yet she has never appeared. So her father\u2019s\nwar-priests are angry and have at last been to see the Twain in their\nhome on Thunder Mountain, and the Twain have commanded that soon it\nshall come to pass as the people wish or that our beautiful maiden shall\nperish. Even tomorrow it shall be; so have the Twain said; and when the\nfourth dance comes out it shall come to pass, and our beautiful maiden\nshall be no more; thus have the Twain said. I cannot enrich my mother,\nthe daughter of the priest-chief, thy beautiful child, with words of\nadvice, with aid of mine own will; hence come I unto thee. What shall I\ndo?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat shalt thou do?\u201d repeated the Sun. \u201cI know it is all as thou hast\nsaid. Know I not all these things? The Twain, whose powers are surpassed\nonly by mine own, have they not commanded that it shall be? What shalt\nthou do but descend at once? Tell her to bathe herself and put on her\nfinest garments tomorrow morning. Then, when the time comes, mount her\nupon thy shoulders and bear her up to me. Only possibly thou wilt have\nthe great good fortune to reach my house with her. Possibly in thy\njourney hither it shall come to be, alas! as the Twain have said; for\nhave not they said it should be, and are they not above all things else\npowerful?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, we\u2019ll try to come.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I will watch thee when thou art about to reach the mid-heavens.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I go,\u201d said the Eagle, rising.\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d responded the Sun; \u201chappily mayest thou journey.\u201d And the\nEagle began to descend.\n\nMeanwhile the daughter of the priest-chief opened the sky-hole and\nplaced a sacred medicine-bowl half full of water on the floor where the\nsunlight would shine into it, and where it would reflect the sky, and\nthere she sat looking intently down into the water. By-and-by the Eagle\ncame in sight, and she saw his shadow in the water.\n\nJust then the Sun drew his shield from his face. Oh! how hot it was down\nthere on the earth. The sky was ablaze with light, and no one dared to\nlook at it; and the sands grew so hot that they burned the moccasins of\nthose who walked upon them. Everybody ran into the houses, and the Eagle\nspread his wings and gently descended, for he too was hot. And when he\ncame near to the house, the girl let him in and welcomed him.\n\n\u201cThou comest, father,\u201d said she.\n\nHe only drooped his head and flapped his wings, unable even to speak, so\nhot was he.\n\nShe saw that he was near to fainting. Therefore she fanned him--made\ncool wind for him with the basket tray and her mantle--and sprinkled\ncold water upon his head.\n\n\u201cThou hast been to the home of our father?\u201d she asked, when he had\nrecovered.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied the Eagle.\n\n\u201cWhat has he advised that we should do?\u201d asked she.\n\n\u201cThis,\u201d said the Eagle; \u201ctomorrow morning at the dawn of day thou wilt\narise and bathe thyself. Then at sunrise thou shalt put on thy finest\ngarments. The dance will come forth; and then it will come forth the\nsecond time, and the third time, and again it will come the fourth time.\nThen I will mount thee upon my shoulders and bear thee away toward the\nSun, who will be waiting for us. It may be that we shall have the good\nfortune to reach his home; and it may be that we shall get only a little\nway when everything shall come to pass unhappily and thou wilt be no\nmore.\u201d That is what he said to her.\n\nIt grew night. The girl collected all the basket-trays that she had made\nfor her father\u2019s sacred plumes; these by the fire-light she spread out,\nand then began to divide them into different heaps.\n\nNow, her parents, who were sitting in the next room, heard her until it\nwas late at night, and they said to each other: \u201cWonder what it is that\nkeeps our daughter up?\u201d So the old priest-chief arose and entered her\nroom.\n\n\u201cMy child, art thou not at rest yet?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied she. \u201cI am dividing the trays I have made for thee.\nThese,\u201d said she, pointing to a heap of yellow ones, \u201cshall pertain to\nthe north-land; these, the blue, to the west-land; the red to the land\nof the south, the white to the east, the variegated to the upper\nregions, and the black to the regions below. For tomorrow, beloved\nfather, thou shalt see me no more.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the father, for he was a great priest and knew the\nwill of the gods, and to this he always said: \u201cIt is well. What,\ntherefore, should I say?\u201d So the old man left her.\n\nThen as morning approached she bathed herself. And the Eagle, looking\ndown, said: \u201cMy child, my mother, lie down and rest thyself, for we are\nabout to undertake a long journey. Never fear; I will wake thee at the\nright time.\u201d So she lay down and slept. The Eagle perched himself above\nher and watched for the dawn.\n\nBy-and-by the great star arose. Then he knew that the Sun would soon\nfollow it, and he said: \u201cMother, arise! dress thyself, for the time is\nnear at hand.\u201d\n\nOutside on the house-tops called the two war-priests to their children:\n\n \u201cHasten, hasten! Prepare for the dance!\n Hasten, hasten! Eat for the dance!\n Hasten, hasten, our children all!\u201d\n\nThen the girl went into another room and brought forth her finest\ndresses, and these, garment after garment, she put on--not one dress,\nbut many. Upon her shoulders she placed four mantles of snow-white\nembroidered cotton. Then she said to the Eagle: \u201cWait a moment; I have\nyet to think of our children in the Home of the Eagles.\u201d Therefore she\nbrought forth her basket-bowls of fine meal with which she had been\naccustomed to powder her face. There was meal of the yellow corn, the\nblue corn-meal, the red corn-meal, the white corn-meal, the speckled\ncorn-meal, and the black corn-meal. \u201cSee,\u201d said she, as she regarded the\nvarious vessels of meal; \u201cmy children, by means of these shall ye\nbeautify flesh; by means of these be precious against evil; by means of\nthese shall ye finish preciously your roads of life. I am to be no more.\nFar off and to an unknown region go I. Possibly I may reach it, and\nlive; probably not reach it, and die. These do I leave as your\ninheritance. My children, good-by.\u201d[40]\n\n [40] The maiden here addresses mankind generally.\n\nThen the Eagle descended. The drum began to sound outside; the dance was\ncoming--for the first time, mind you, not the fourth. Then said the\nEagle, as he lowered himself: \u201cPlace thyself upon my back; grasp me by\nthe shoulders.\u201d And the girl did as she was bidden. She reclined herself\nlengthwise on the back of the Eagle, and grasped with her left hand his\nshoulders. \u201cNow, place one foot on one of my thighs and the other on the\nother.\u201d She placed one foot on one of his thighs and the other on the\nother; and the Eagle spread his tail and raised it that she might not\nfall off. \u201cAll ready?\u201d asked he, as the drum of the coming dance sounded\noutside.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the girl; and they arose.\n\n\u201cOpen the wicket!\u201d and _shoa!_ the Eagle spread his wings and away off\nup into the sky he sprang with the maiden. Round and round, round and\nround, they circled in the sky, but those below saw nothing as they\ndanced in the shadows of the great houses. The dancers retired. Then\nthey came forth again. Again they retired and came forth. Then the girl\nsaid: \u201cFather, slower. Let me sing a farewell song to my people, my\nchildren of Earth, that they may know I am going.\u201d\n\nThe Eagle spread his wings and sailed gently through the air as the\nmaiden sang. Then the people in the plaza below heard the song, and\nsaid: \u201cAlas, alas! ye Twain!\u201d said they to the two gods who led the\ndance. \u201cOur mother, our child, away off through the skies goes she! Ye\nare fools that ye have let her escape and deceive us!\u201d\n\nSome listened to the song and learned it. Others did not. For the third\ntime the dancers came forth. \u201cOnce more have we to dance,\u201d said the two\ngods. \u201cWhere are they now?\u201d\n\n\u201cIn the mid-heavens,\u201d said the people.\n\n\u201cTake it easily, my child,\u201d said the Eagle. \u201cOnce more are they to come\nforth. Possibly we will yet have the great good fortune to reach the\nhome of our father.\u201d And they sped along through the air, nearer and\nnearer to the home of the Sun-father, while the dancers below danced\nharder and harder--many so joyful that they listened not to the\ncomplainings of the people around, but danced only more vigorously.\n\nThen the dancers retired and came out for the fourth and last time. In\nthe van danced the two gods, their faces blackened with the paint of\nwar, their hands bearing bows and arrows with which to destroy the\ndaughter of the priest-chief.\n\nYes, they were almost there. Now, the Eagle\u2019s heart was high with hope.\nWhen the two gods below reached the center of the plaza they turned to\nthe people and asked: \u201cWhere are they? Where have they gone?\u201d\n\n\u201cThere they are in the skies--almost there,\u201d replied the people.\n\n\u201cHumph!\u201d responded the gods. \u201cSuppose they _are_ almost there; they\nshall never reach the home of our father!\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, then, hurry, brother younger!\u201d exclaimed the elder; \u201cwith which\nhand wilt thou draw the arrow?\u201d\n\n\u201cWith thy hand, my right,\u201d said the younger.\n\n\u201cVery well; with thy hand, my left,\u201d said the elder.[41]\n\n [41] The twin children of the Sun were, in the days of creation,\n the benignant guardians of men; but when the world became filled\n with envy and war, they were changed by the eight gods of the\n storms into warriors more powerful than all monsters, gods, or\n men. The elder one was right-handed, the younger, left-handed;\n hence the form of expression here used.\n\nSo they drew their medicine-pointed arrows to the heads. _Tsi-ni-i-i!_\nsang the arrows as they shot through the air. Soon they reached the home\nof the Sun, crossed one another over his face, and shot downward more\nswiftly than ever toward the coming Eagle and the maiden. \u201cAlas! my\nmother, my child,\u201d said the Sun as the arrows flew past him and from\nhim, \u201cthou art no more.\u201d And the arrows shot downward on their course.\n\n_Tsook!_ sang the arrow of the elder god as it pierced the back of the\ngirl and entered her heart. _Tso-ko!_ sang the arrow of the younger as\nit struck in the middle of her back.\n\n\u201cAlas! my mother, my mother,\u201d cried the Eagle, \u201cit is over, alas, alas!\u201d\nsaid he, as she released her hold, and, fainting, he left her to fall\nthrough the air. Over and over, this way and that, fell the beautiful\nmaiden; and as the people strained their eyes, nearer and nearer to the\ntown neath the mountain she fell. Soon, over and over, this way and\nthat, she came falling even with the top of the mountain.\n\nThen the people rushed past one another out of the plaza toward the\nplace where they thought she would strike. And just over there below the\nHome of the Eagles, where the Waters of the Coyote gush forth from the\ncliff-base, fell the beautiful maiden.\n\nThen there were born twin children--two wee infants who rolled off into\nthe rubbish and were concealed under sticks and stones.\n\nDown rushed the people, and an Acoma spectator seized her body. \u201cMine!\u201d\ncried he, triumphantly, as he raised the body above him.\n\n\u201cThine!\u201d cried the people, for they had lost the beautiful maiden.\n\n\u201cOurs!\u201d cried the Acomas, one to another, who had come to witness the\ndances. \u201cGreat good fortune this day has smiled on us.\u201d And they bore\nher body away to their pueblo in the east.\n\nNow, under the other end of Thunder Mountain was the home of the\nBadgers, and an old Badger who lived there was out hunting. After the\npeople had again gathered in the city, he passed near the Waters of the\nCoyote and heard the voices of the infants crying among the rubbish.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said he, \u201cI hear the cry of children. My little boys, my little\ngirls,\u201d cried he, \u201cwhichever ye may be\u201d; and he hastily searched and\nfound them where they were rolling about and crying among the refuse.\n\u201cTwins!\u201d cried he. \u201cBoys! Somebody has left them here. Soon he will come\nback to reclaim them. Let me walk away for a few moments.\u201d\n\nSo he walked all around, but found no traces of the parents, only the\ntracks of many men who had gathered near.\n\n\u201cMine!\u201d said he, as he trotted back; and with soft grass he rubbed them\ntill they were free from the mud and refuse. \u201cThanks, thanks! Splendid!\nChildren have I, and boys at that, and when I am older grown they will\ntake from me the cares of the chase. Goodness! Thanks! Nothing but boys\nshall be my children!\u201d So he rubbed them dry and clean with more soft\ngrass, and they stopped crying. Then he took some dry grass and made a\nbundle and put them in it, and started off for his home in the Red\nHills.\n\nThe old Badger-woman was up on top of their house looking around,\nrunning back and forth and jumping in and out of her doorway. \u201cHai!\u201d\nsaid she; \u201cthou comest?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, hurry!\u201d said the old Badger. \u201cCome down and meet me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat have you?\u201d asked the Badger-woman, as she ran down to meet him.\n\n\u201cWhat have I,\u201d said the old Badger, \u201cbut a couple of wee little\nchildren! Here, take them and carry them up to the house.\u201d\n\nSo the old woman took the bundle of grass and opened it and began to\nfondle the children. \u201cO my poor little children; poor little babes!\u201d\nsaid she.\n\n\u201cAh! stop playing with them and hurry along!\u201d commanded the old Badger.\n\nSo the old woman hurried up to their doorway as fast as possible and ran\nin. The old Badger followed, and she said to him: \u201cWhere in the world\ndid you get these little children?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d replied he, \u201cI had the greatest luck in the world. I was out\nhunting, you know, and found these two little fellows down in Coyote\nCa\u00f1on, just this side of those men\u2019s houses. They\u2019re boys, both of them.\nWhen they grow up, old wife, perhaps they can hunt for us, and then I\nshall rest myself from the labors of the hunt, with plenty of meat for\nyou and me every day of the year. What are you standing there for?\u201d said\nhe. \u201cWhy don\u2019t you go and get them something to eat and make them a\nbed?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes!\u201d responded the old woman. \u201cMy poor little children!\u201d So she\nmade a little nest at the bottom of the hole and laid them on it. Then\nshe ran and fetched some green-corn ears and, picking the kernels off,\nmade some gruel of them, and fed the little fellows. So the boy babies\nate till they kicked their heels with satisfaction, and that night the\nold Badger-mother took one in her arms and slept with it, and the old\nBadger-father slept with the other.\n\nNow, every day they grew as much as the children of men do in a year, so\nthat in eight days they were as large and knew as much as children\nusually do in eight years. There was no little animal that they could\nnot kill unfailingly, for they were the children of the Sun, you know.\nBut, alas! they grew weary of killing birds around their doorway, and\ntheir old father kept telling them every morning never to go out of\nsight of their house; and the old woman kept watching them always for\nfear that they would run off and get lost, or somebody would find and\nclaim them. Yes, they grew impatient of this. They wanted to kill\nprairie-dogs and cottontails, but they could not get near enough to\nthem. So one night when the old Badger came home they said to him:\n\u201cFather, come now; do make us some bows and arrows so that we can hunt\nrabbits, and you and mother can have all that you want to eat.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d replied the old man. And the next day he went off to the\nCa\u00f1on of the Woods, and somehow he managed to cut down a small oak and\nget a lot of branches for arrows. He brought these home, and that night\nwith a piece of flint, little by little he managed to make each of the\nboys a bow and some arrows. But when he tried to put feathers on the\narrows he was very awkward (for you know badgers don\u2019t have fingers like\nmen), so he had to take a single feather for each arrow and split it\nand twist it around the butt of the shaft. That very night, do you know,\nit snowed; yes, a great deal of snow fell, and the little fellows looked\nout and said to each other and to the old Badgers: \u201cNow then, tomorrow\nwe will go rabbit-hunting.\u201d\n\n\u201cO mother, make a lunch for us!\u201d they exclaimed.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d asked the old woman.\n\n\u201cWe are going out among the hills and down on the plains where the trees\ngrow, to hunt rabbits.\u201d\n\n\u201cO my poor little boys! What will you do?--you will freeze to death, for\nyou have no clothes and no wool grows on your backs.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, mother, we\u2019re tough. We will get up tomorrow and wait until the\nsun shines warm--then we can go hunting.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow in the world will you carry your food? You have no blanket to wrap\nit in.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, you just make some corn-cakes,\u201d answered the boys, \u201cand string them\non a little stick, and we can take hold of the middle of the stick and\ncarry them just as well as not.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hi-ta!_\u201d cried the old woman. \u201cListen, father.\u201d So she made the\ncorn-cakes and strung them on little sticks, and the two boys went to\nbed. But they couldn\u2019t sleep very well, being so impatient to go hunting\nrabbits, and they kept waking each other and peeping out to see how long\nit would be before daylight.\n\nIn the morning the old Badger got up early and collected a lot of bark\nwhich he rubbed until it was soft, and then he wove the boys each a\ncurious pair of moccasins that would come half-way up to the knees. So\nthe elder brother put on his moccasins and ran out into the snow.\n\u201c_U-kwatchi!_\u201d exclaimed he. \u201cFirst rate!\u201d So the other little boy put\non his bark moccasins, and they took their strings of corn-cakes and\nbows and arrows, and started off as fast as they could. Well, they went\noff among the hills at the foot of Thunder Mountain. It was only a\nlittle while ere they struck a rabbit trail, and the first arrow they\nshot killed the rabbit. So they kept on hunting until they had a large\nnumber of rabbits and began to get tired. Although there was snow on the\nground, the sun was very warm, so they soon forgot all about it until\nthey began to grow hungry, and then they looked up and saw that it was\nnoon-time, because the sun was resting in the mid-heavens. So they went\nup on top of a high hill, and carried their rabbits there one by one, to\nfind a place where the snow was shallow. Here they brushed a space clear\nof the snow, and, depositing the rabbits, sat down to eat their\ncorn-cakes, which they laid on a bundle of grass. While they sat there\neating, the Sun looked down and pitied his two poor little children.\n\u201cWait a bit,\u201d said he to himself, \u201cI\u2019ll go down and talk to the little\nfellows, and help them.\u201d So by his will alone he descended, and lo! he\nstood there on the earth just a little way from the two boys,--grand,\nbeautiful, sublime. Upon his body were garments of embroidered cotton;\nfringed leggings covered his knees, and he was girt with many-colored\ngirdles; buckskins of bright leather protected his feet; bracelets and\nstrings of wampum ornamented his neck and arms; turquoise earrings hung\nfrom his ears; beautiful plumes waved over his head; his long, glossy\nhair was held with cords of many colors, into which great plumes of\nmacaw feathers were stuck. Fearful, wonderful, beautiful, he stood.\nSuddenly one of the boys looked up and saw the Sun-father standing\nthere.\n\n\u201cBlood!\u201d cried he to the other. \u201c_Ati!_ Somebody\u2019s coming!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere?\u201d asked the other. \u201cWhere?\u201d\n\n\u201cRight over there!\u201d\n\n\u201c_Ati!_\u201d he exclaimed.\n\nThen the Sun, with stately step, approached them, dazzling their eyes\nwith his beauty and his magnificent dress. So the poor little fellows\nhuddled together and crouched their knees close to their bodies (for\nthey had no clothes on), and watched him, trembling, until he came near.\nThen one of them said faintly: \u201cComest thou?\u201d as though he just\nremembered it.\n\n\u201cYea, I do, my children,\u201d said the Sun. \u201cHow are ye these many days?\u201d\n\n\u201cHappy,\u201d responded they; but they were almost frightened out of their\nwits, and kept looking first at the Sun-father and then at each other.\n\n\u201cMy children,\u201d said the Sun-father tenderly, \u201cye are my own children; I\ngave ye both life.\u201d But they only gazed at him, not believing what he\nsaid.\n\n\u201cYe are both mine own children,\u201d he repeated.\n\n\u201cIs that so?\u201d replied they.\n\n\u201cYea, that is true; and I saw ye here, and pitied ye; so I came to speak\nwith ye and to help ye.\u201d\n\n\u201c_Hai!_\u201d exclaimed they. But they still looked at each other and at the\nSun-father, and did not believe him.\n\n\u201cYea, ye are verily my children,\u201d continued the Sun. \u201cI am your own\nfather. Around Thunder Mountain there is a city of men. It is called the\nHome of the Eagles, and there once lived a beautiful maiden who never\nleft her home, but was always shut in her room. Day after day at midday,\njust at this time, I came down and visited her in my own sunlight. And a\ngreat Eagle always stood and watched her. Now, the townspeople grew\nanxious to see her, so they danced day after day their most beautiful\ndances, hoping to entice her to come forth; but she never looked out. So\nher father\u2019s warriors went to the home of \u00c1haiy\u00fata and his younger\nbrother, M\u00e1tsail\u00e9ma, where they lived with their grandmother, on the\nmiddle of Thunder Mountain, and the Twain said that they would go with\nthem and compel her to come forth. Therefore, one day they went and led\nthe dance of the \u00d3inahe. Yet, although they danced four times, she would\nnot come forth, but tried to escape to my home in the heavens on the\nback of her Eagle; so the two gods shot her, and she fell down the\nca\u00f1on. Then it was that ye two, my children, were born and rolled among\nthe bushes. Now, the people ran down from the village to strive for\nyour mother\u2019s body, and an Acoma got her and carried her away to the\nhome of his people. An old Badger found ye and brought ye home to his\nwife, and that is the way ye came to live in the home of the Badgers.\u201d\n\nStill the little ones did not believe him.\n\n\u201cLook!\u201d said the Sun-father. \u201cSee what I have brought ye!\u201d Then he\ncontinued: \u201cWait; in eight days, in the Home of the Eagles, where your\naunts live in the house of your mother\u2019s father, there will be a great\ndance. Go ye thither. Ye will climb up a crooked path and enter the town\nthrough a road under the houses. Do not go out at once into the plaza,\nbut wait until the dancers come out. Then step forth, and over to the\nleft of the plaza ye will see your grandfather\u2019s house. It is the\ngreatest house in the city, and the longest ladder leads up to it, and\nfringes of hair ornament its poles. On the roof ye will see, if the day\nbe warm, two noisy macaws, and there ye will see your mother\u2019s\nsisters--your own aunts. When ye go into the plaza the people will rush\nup to ye and say: \u2018Whither do ye come, friends? Will ye not join in the\ndance?\u2019 And ye must say ye will, and then your aunts will come down and\ndance for the first time, because they are the most beautiful maidens in\nthe pueblo, and very proud. But they will take hold of your hands and\ndance with ye, and when they have done will ask ye to come into their\nhouse; and ye must go.\n\n\u201cNow, the one who sits over in the northern corner is the first sister\nof your mother, therefore your mother; and the one who sits next to her\nis your next mother, and so on. There will be eight of them, and the\nyoungest will be like a sister unto ye. They will place stools for ye,\nand ye must sit down and call them aunts. They will say: \u2018Certainly, we\nare the aunts of all good boys in the cities of men who are not our\nenemies.\u2019 And then ye must tell them that they are your real aunts, that\nthis is your house, that your mother used to live there--was the maiden\nwho never went out, but always sat making beautiful basket-trays of\nmany-colored splints. Then ye must lead them into the next room, and the\nnext, and then into the next one, and point to the beautiful\nbasket-trays on the walls. There on the northern wall will hang a yellow\ntray, on the west wall will hang a blue one, and on the south wall, a\nred tray, then on the east wall will hang a white tray, and fastened to\nthe ceiling will be a tray of many colors, while a black one will stand\nunder the floor. And then ye must point to the trays and say: \u2018These our\nmother made.\u2019 Then they will believe and embrace ye and will not want to\nlet ye go; but after ye have sat and eaten with them, ye must come back\nto the home of the Badgers. And the next day ye must go to Acoma to get\nyour mother. Just before ye arrive at the town of Acoma ye will meet an\nold, wrinkled hag carrying a big bundle of wood on her back. Ye must\ncall her \u2018grandmother\u2019 and greet her pleasantly. She will tell ye she is\nthe dance-priestess of Acoma. Then ye must ask her why she, a woman,\ncomes out to gather wood, and she will reply that she gets the wood to\nmake a light. Then ask her why she wishes a light, and she will say to\nye that day after day she lights a fire in her ceremonial chamber and\nthat when she reaches home with her wood the young men of her clan come\ntogether and give her food, and that at night she takes the wood to the\nceremonial chamber and then sits on a stone seat by the side of the\nfireplace and builds a fire; that the young men gather in the chamber\nand prepare for a dance. And when they are ready she takes the bones of\nyour mother from a niche in the west end of the chamber and distributes\nthem among the young men, who carry them in the dance. She gives the\nskull to the first one, the breast-bone to the next, the ribs to\nanother, and so on until they all have bones to carry in the dance. When\nthe dance is over, she goes around and takes all the bones back again\nand replaces them in the niche. Then the young men depart for their\nhomes, but some of them sleep there in the chamber, and then she lies\ndown to sleep and to keep guard over the bones.\n\n\u201cNow, when she has told ye these things, ye must ask her if that is all.\nIf she says \u2018Yes,\u2019 kill her; then skin her, and the younger brother must\nwave his hands over her skin and put it on, and he will look just like\nthe old woman. And he must climb up to the town of the Acomas and enter\nand do just as the old woman said that she did.\n\n\u201cNow, after the dance is over and he has taken back all of the bones\nand replaced them in the niche, he must lie down and pretend to sleep,\nand some of the young men will go home; others will sleep there. When\nthey all begin to snore, he must gather all the bones, and the two dried\neyes, and the heart of his mother, and bring them away as fast as ever\nhe can to where his brother waits. And when he gets there,--lo! she will\ncome to life again and be just as she was before she was killed by the\nTwain. Now, mind, ye must not leave a single bone nor any part, for if\nye do, your mother will lack that when she comes to life again.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied the boys, \u201cwe will do as you have told us;\ncertainly we will.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, I have given ye with your birth the power to slay all game; but\nmind that not a single rabbit, nor deer, nor antelope, nor mountain\nsheep, nor elk--though he be the finest ye have ever seen--shall ye\nslay, for in that case ye shall perish with your mother.\u201d\n\nSo the two boys promised they would not. \u201cOf course we will not,\u201d said\nthe younger brother. \u201cWhen one\u2019s father commands him, can he disobey?\u201d\n\n\u201cCome hither,\u201d said the Sun-father to the younger brother. \u201cStand here.\u201d\nSo the little boy did as he was bidden.\n\n\u201cLift up thy foot.\u201d Then the Sun-father drew off the moccasin of bark\nand put beautiful fringed leggings upon it, and replaced the bark\nmoccasins with buskins like his own, and tied up the leggings with\nmany-colored garters, and dressed him as he was dressed, and placed a\nbeautiful quiver upon his back. But the poor little boys were\ndark-colored, and their hair was tangled and matted over their heads.\nThen the Sun-father turned himself about as if to summon some unseen\nmessenger, and created a great warm cloud of mist, with which he\ncleansed the boys, and lo! their skins became smooth and clear, and\ntheir hair fell down their backs in wavy masses. Then the Sun-father\narranged the younger brother\u2019s hair and placed a plume therein like his\nown, and beautiful plumes on his head.\n\n\u201cThere,\u201d said he to the elder; \u201clook at thy younger brother.\u201d But the\npoor little fellow was covered with shame, and dared only steal glances\nat his brother and the Sun-father. Then the Sun-father dressed the other\nlike the first.\n\n\u201c_Ti!_\u201d exclaimed they, as they looked at each other and at the\nSun-father.\n\n\u201cYou are just like Him,\u201d they said to each other. But still they did not\ncall him father. Then they fell to conversing.\n\n\u201cWhy; he must be our father!\u201d said they to each other. \u201cMother\u2019s face\nhas a black streak right down the middle of it, and father\u2019s face is\njust like it, except that his chin is grizzly.\u201d Then they knew that the\nSun was their father, and they thanked him for his goodness.\n\nThen said the Sun-father to them: \u201cMind what I have told ye, my\nchildren. I must go to my home in the heavens. Happy may ye always be.\nYe are my children; I love ye, and therefore I came to help ye. Run\nhome, now, for your father and mother who reared ye--the Badgers--are\nawaiting your coming. They will not know ye, so ye must roll up your\nbark moccasins and take along your strings of corn-cakes together with\nthe rabbits ye have slain.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can we carry them?\u201d asked they; \u201cfor they are heavy.\u201d\n\nThen the Sun-father turned about and passed his hands gently over the\nheap of dead rabbits. \u201cLift them now,\u201d said he to the children; and when\nthey tried to lift them, lo! they were as light as dry grass-stalks. So\nthey bade their father farewell and started home. When they had gone a\nlittle way they stopped to look around, but their father was nowhere to\nbe seen.\n\nSure enough, when they neared home there were the two old Badgers\nrunning around their hole, and the old Badger-father was just getting\nready to go out and search, for fear that they had perished from cold.\nHe had just gone down to get some rabbit-skins and other things with\nwhich to wrap them, when the old woman, who was up above, shouted down:\n\u201cHurry, come out! Somebody is coming!\u201d\n\n\u201cLook!\u201d said one of the children to the other. \u201cThere\u2019s our poor mother\nwaiting for us. Hurry up! Let\u2019s run, or else our father will come out\nsearching for us.\u201d\n\nAs they approached they called out: \u201cPoor mother, here you are in the\ncold waiting for us.\u201d But she did not recognize them, and only hid her\nface in her paws from shame, for they were too beautiful to look\nupon--just like the Sun-father.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t you know us, mother?\u201d asked the Two to the old woman just as the\nold Badger came out.\n\n\u201cNo!\u201d answered she.\n\n\u201cWhy, we are your children!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! my children did not look like you!\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are they! Look here!\u201d said they, and they showed the bark moccasins\nand the strings of corn-cakes.\n\n\u201cOur poor children!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, our father is no other than the Sun-father, and he came down to\nspeak to us today, and he dressed us as you see, just like himself, and\nhe said that our mother used to live over in the Home of the Eagles,\nthat our aunts still live there, and our grandfather, and that our\nmother used to live there, but the Twain killed her as she was trying to\nescape on the back of an Eagle. And when she fell into the Ca\u00f1on of the\nCoyote we were born, and father here found us and you both reared us.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, that is very true,\u201d said the old Badger. \u201cI know it all; and I\nknow, too, that there will be a dance at the Home of the Eagles in eight\ndays. Tomorrow there will be only seven left, and when the eighth day\ncomes you will both go there to see it. Come up and come down,\u201d said he.\n\nSo the two entered, but they were ill at ease in their clothes, which\nthey were not used to. And when the old mother had placed soft\nrabbit-skins on the floor, they doffed their clothing and carefully\nlaid it away. Then the whole family ate their evening meal.\n\n\u201cKeep count for us, father, and when the time comes, let us know,\u201d said\nthe boys.\n\nSo the days passed by until the day before the dance, and that morning\nthe old Badger said to the Two: \u201cTomorrow the dance will come.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied they; \u201clet us go out and hunt today, that you and\nmother may have something to eat.\u201d So they went forth, and in the\nevening came back with great numbers of rabbits; and the old mother\nskinned the rabbits and put some of them to cook over night, so that her\nchildren might eat before starting for the town under Thunder Mountain.\n\nAt sunrise next morning both dressed themselves carefully, put on their\nplumes, and started on the pathway that leads around the mountain. They\npassed the village of K\u2019y\u00e1tik\u2019ia on their way, and the people marvelled\ngreatly at their beauty and their magnificent dress. And so they\nfollowed the road through the Ca\u00f1on of the Coyotes, thence by the\ncrooked pathway and the covered road under the house into the court of\nK\u2019i\u00e1kime. Just as the Sun-father had told them, they found everything\nthere. There was the great house with the tall ladder and the two\nmacaws, and there were the young maidens, their aunts, sitting on the\nhouse-top.\n\nAnd as the dancers came into the court they stepped forward, and then it\nwas that the people first saw and hailed them. The chief of the dance\ncame forward and asked them whither they came and if they would not join\nin the dance. So they assented and came forward to the center of the\nplaza, and as they began to dance, the young girls arose and the dance\nchiefs went and escorted them to the dance plaza.\n\nAlthough they told them, \u201cDance here,\u201d they did not obey. They ran right\nover to where the two young men were dancing, and took hold of their\nhands just as the Sun-father had told them it would come to pass. And,\nin fact, everything happened just as he had said. Yes, they all ran down\nand grasped the two boys\u2019 hands, and when the dance was over and they\nlet go, they said to the two handsome young strangers: \u201cCome up; come\nin.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the two young men. So they all went up into the house\nand sat down. Now, all these girls were young, and they were very much\npleased with the young men. In fact the two youngest were in love with\nthem already; so they smiled and made themselves very pleasant. Then the\nfirst brother arose and went over to the eldest one, and said:\n\u201cMother-aunt.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d she replied, \u201cfor of course throughout the cities of men\nwe, as the daughters of a great priest, are the mothers of\nchildren,\u201d--and so on until they came to the last and youngest one, whom\nthey called \u201clittle mother-aunt,\u201d and she also replied that, however\nyoung they might be, still they might be counted the mothers of the\nchildren of men.\n\n\u201cNo, verily, ye are our parents,\u201d replied the Twain. \u201cBeyond this room\nis another, and beyond that another, and beyond that yet another where\nlived our mother, who never went forth from her house, but sat day after\nday making sacred trays. And there even now, according to the colors of\nthe parts of the world hang her trays on the wall.\u201d\n\nAnd so, as the Sun had told them, they finished their story. Then the\npeople were convinced, and sent for the grandfather, the great\npriest-chief, and when he came they all embraced their new children,\nadmiring greatly their straight, smooth limbs and abundant hair. Then\nthe grandfather dressed them in some of the beautiful ornaments their\nmother used to wear, and when evening approached they feasted them. And\nafter the meal was over, as the Sun was setting, the two boys arose and\nsaid, \u201cWe must go.\u201d\n\n\u201cStay with us, stay with us,\u201d the young girls and the grandfather said.\n\u201cWhy should you go away from your home? This is your own home.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; we said to our mother and father, the Badgers, that we would return\nto them; therefore we must go,\u201d urged the boys. So at last they\nconsented and wished them a happy journey.\n\n\u201cFear not,\u201d said the Two as they started, \u201cfor we shall yet go and get\nour mother. Even tomorrow we shall go to Acoma where the people dance\nday after day in her memory.\u201d Then they departed and returned to the\nplace of the Badgers.\n\nWhen they arrived at home, sure enough, there were their Badger-mother\nand Badger-father awaiting them outside their holes.\n\n\u201cOh, here you are!\u201d they cried.\n\n\u201cYes; how did you come unto the evening?\u201d\n\n\u201cHappily!\u201d replied the old ones. \u201cCome in, come in!\u201d So they entered.\n\nWhen they had finished eating, the elder brother said: \u201cMother, father,\nlook ye! Tomorrow we must go after our mother to Acoma. Make us a\nluncheon, and we will start early in the morning. We are swift runners\nand shall get there in one day; and the next day we will start back; and\nthe next day, quite early, we will come home again with our mother.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied the Badger-father; \u201cit is well.\u201d But the\nBadger-mother said, \u201cOh! my poor children, my poor boys!\u201d\n\nSo, early next morning, the Badger-mother rolled up some sweet\ncorn-cakes in a blanket, for she did not have to string them now, and\ntogether the Twain started up the eastern trail. Their father, the Sun,\nthought to help them; therefore he lengthened the day and took two steps\nonly at a time, until the two boys had arrived at the Springs of the\nElks, almost on the borders of the Acoma country. Then, with his usual\nspeed journeyed the Sun-father toward the Land of Night; and the two\nboys continued until they arrived within sight of the town of the\nAcomas--away out there on top of a mountain. Sure enough, there was an\nold hag struggling along under a load of wood, and as the two brothers\ncame up to her they said: \u201cHa, grandmother, how are you these many\ndays?\u201d\n\n\u201cHappy,\u201d replied the old woman.\n\n\u201cWhy is it that you, a woman, and an old woman, have to carry wood?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I am the priestess of the dance!\u201d answered the old woman.\n\n\u201cPriestess of the dance?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat dance?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, there once lived a maiden in the Town of the Eagles, and the two\nGods of War shot her one day from the back of an Eagle who was trying to\nrun away with her, and she fell; and one of my young men was the first\nto grasp her, therefore we dance with her bones every night.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, why do you get this wood?\u201d they asked.\n\n\u201cI light the ceremonial chamber with it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you do when you get home?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, the maidens of my clan come and baptize me and feast me; then when\nthe evening comes I go and light a fire with this wood in the chamber\nand wait until the young men gather; and when everything is ready I go\nto a niche in the wall and get the maiden\u2019s bones and distribute them;\nand when they have finished the dance I tell them to stop, and they\nreplace the bones.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do they do then?\u201d asked the two boys.\n\n\u201cWhy, some of them go home, and some sleep right there, and I lie down\nand sleep there, too.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs that all?\u201d inquired the two boys.\n\n\u201cWhy, yes, what more should there be?\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing more, except that I think we had better kill you now.\u201d\nThereupon they struck her to the earth and killed her. Then they skinned\nher like a bag, and the elder brother dressed the younger in the skin,\nas the Sun-father had directed, and he shouldered the bundle of wood.\n\n\u201cHow do I look?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cJust like her, for all the world!\u201d responded the other.\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said he; \u201cwait for me here.\u201d\n\n\u201cGo ahead,\u201d said the elder brother, and away the younger went. He ran\nwith all his might till he came near to the town, and then he began to\nlimp along and labor up the pathway just as the old woman was wont to\ndo, so that everybody thought that he was the old woman, indeed. And\nsure enough it all happened just as the Sun-father had said it would.\nWhen the dance was over, some of the young men went away and others\nslept right there. There were so many of them, though, that they almost\ncovered the floor. When they all began to snore, the young man arose,\nthrew off his disguise, and stepped carefully between the sleepers till\nhe reached the niche in the wall. Then he put his mother\u2019s bones, one by\none, into his blanket, felt all around to see that he left nothing, and\nstarted for the ladder. He reached it all right and took one, two, three\nsteps; but when his foot touched the fourth rung it creaked, and the\nsleeping dancers awoke and started.\n\n\u201cSomebody is going up the ladder!\u201d they exclaimed to one another. Then\nthe young man ran up as fast as ever he could, but alas! he dropped one\nof his mother\u2019s eyes out of the blanket. He kept on running until he\nreached the foot of the hill upon which the town stood; and when he came\nto the spring down on the plains he stopped to drink, and lo! his mother\nhad come to life!\n\n\u201c_Ahwa!_\u201d uttered the mother, \u201cI\u2019m tired and I don\u2019t know what is the\nmatter with my eyes, for things don\u2019t look straight.\u201d\n\nThen the young man looked at his mother. She was more beautiful than all\nthe other girls had been, but one of her eyes was shrunken in. \u201cAlas! my\nmother,\u201d said he, \u201cI have dropped one of your eyes; but never mind, you\ncan comb your hair down over it and no one will ever know the\ndifference.\u201d\n\nAs soon as they were rested they started again, and soon came to where\nthe elder brother stood awaiting them. When he looked at his mother, he\nsaw that one of her eyes had been left.\n\n\u201cDidn\u2019t I tell you beforehand to be careful?\u201d said he. \u201cPoor mother; you\nhave lost one of her eyes!\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, it can\u2019t be helped; never mind, she can comb her hair down over\nthe eye that is dry and no one will ever know the difference.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s so; it can\u2019t be helped. Now let\u2019s go,\u201d said the elder brother,\nand they all started.\n\nWhen they arrived at the Waters of the Elks, the younger brother said:\n\u201cLet\u2019s camp here.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, let\u2019s run home,\u201d returned the elder brother.\n\n\u201cNo, let\u2019s camp. Our poor mother will get tired, and, besides, she can\nsee nothing of the country we are going through.\u201d\n\nAnd although the elder brother urged that they should go on, the younger\ninsisted that they should stay; therefore they camped. The next day they\ncontinued their journey until they came near to the City of the Heights,\nnot far from their own home; and as they journeyed, the deer, the\nantelope, the elks, and the mountain sheep were everywhere.\n\n\u201cJust look at that buck!\u201d exclaimed the younger brother, clutching his\nbow. \u201cLet\u2019s shoot him.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no!\u201d said the other; \u201cDo you not remember that our father forbade\nus?\u201d So they went on until they came to some trees, and as it was\nnoon-day they sat down to eat. Now, the fine game animals circled all\naround and even came up near enough to smell them, and stood gazing or\ncropping the grass within a few steps of them.\n\n\u201cJust look at that splendid antelope!\u201d cried the younger brother, and he\nnocked an arrow quicker than thought.\n\n\u201cNo, no, no!\u201d cried the elder, \u201cyou must not shoot it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not? Here our poor mother has nothing but corn-cakes to eat, with\nall this meat around us.\u201d And before his brother could speak another\nword, he drew his arrow to the head, and _tsi!_ it pierced the heart of\nthe great antelope and it fell dead.\n\nNow, all the great animals round about grew angry when they saw this,\nand _tene!_ they came thundering after the little party. So the two\nfools, forgetting all about their poor mother, jumped up and ran away\nas fast as they could and climbed a big tree to the very top. When they\nstraddled a big branch and looked down, the great deer had trampled\ntheir poor mother to death. Then they gathered around the foot of the\ntree to batter its trunk with their sharp horns, but they could not stir\nit. Presently some big-horn bucks came running along. _Thle-ee-ta-a-a!_\nthey banged their horns against the butt of the tree until it began to\nsplit and tremble, and presently bang! went the tree, and the boys fell\nto the ground. Then the mountain sheep and the great bucks trampled and\ntore and speared them with their sharp horns, and tossed them from one\nto another and lacerated them with their hoofs until they were like\nworn-out clothing--all torn to pieces except the head of the elder\nbrother which none of them would touch. And there the head lay all\nthrough the winter; and the next spring there was nothing but a skull\nleft of the two brothers.\n\nNow, off in the valley that led to Thunder Mountain, just where it turns\nto go south, stood the village of K\u2019y\u00e1tik\u2019ia, and down in the bottom of\nthe valley the great priest-chief of K\u2019y\u00e1tik\u2019ia had his fields of corn\nand melons and squashes. Summer came, and the squashes were all in\nbloom, when the rain poured down all over the country; and thus, little\nby little, the skull was washed until it fell into a stream and went\nbumping along on the waters even till it came to the fields of corn and\npumpkins and melons in the planting of the priest-chief of K\u2019y\u00e1tik\u2019ia.\n\nNow, when the pumpkin and squash vines were in bloom, the\npriest-chief\u2019s daughter, who was as beautiful as you could look upon,\nwent down every morning just at daylight to gather squash-flowers with\nwhich to sweeten the feast bread. The morning after the rain had passed\nover, very early, she said to her younger sister: \u201cStay here and grind\nmeal while I run down to the squash patch to pick a lot of flowers.\u201d So\nshe took her mantle with her and started for the fields. She had not\nbeen picking flowers long when a voice rose from the middle of the\nvines:\n\n \u201c_\u00c4-te-ya-ye,\n \u00c4-te-ya-ye.\n E-lu-ya._\u201d\n\n Here are more flowers,\n Here are more flowers.\n Beautiful ones.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said the girl, \u201cI wonder what that is!\u201d So she put her blanket of\nflowers down as soon as possible and started to hunt. As she approached\nthe vine where the skull had been wont to lie, lo! there was a handsome\nyoung man!\n\n\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d asked the young man.\n\n\u201cGathering flowers,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cIf you will promise to take me home with you, I will help you,\u201d said\nthe young man.\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied the girl.\n\n\u201cWill you surely do it?\u201d inquired the young man.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said she, and lo! the young man reached out his hand and there\nwas a great heap of flowers already plucked before him! And while they\nwere yet talking, the Sun rose; and as its first rays touched him he\nbegan to sink, until there before the girl was nothing but a hideous old\nskull.\n\n\u201cOh, dear!\u201d cried she; \u201cbut I promised to take it, and I suppose I\nmust.\u201d So she took the skull up with the tips of her fingers and put it\ninto the blanket among the flowers, and started for home. Then she\nentered an inner room of the house, and taking the skull carefully out\nof the blanket, placed some cotton in a large new water-jar, and laid\nthe skull upon it. Then she covered the jar with a flat stone and went\nto work grinding meal.\n\nWhen the Sun was setting, a voice came from the jar.\n\n\u201cTake me down, quick!\u201d And the girl took the skull down and placed it on\nthe floor, and as it grew dark there stood the same handsome young man\nas before, magnificently clothed, with precious stones and shells all\nabout him, just as the Sun-father had dressed him. And the girl was very\nhappy, and told him she would marry him.\n\nNext morning, just as the Sun rose, the young man vanished, and nothing\nbut the old white skull lay on the floor. So the girl placed it in the\njar again, and taking up another water-jar went out toward the spring.\nNow, her younger sister went into the room and espied the jar. \u201cI wonder\nwhat sister has covered this jar up so carefully for,\u201d said she to\nherself; and she stepped up to the jar and took the lid off.\n\n\u201c_Ati!_\u201d cried she. \u201cO dear! O dear!\u201d she screamed. For when she looked\ndown into the jar there was a great rattlesnake coiled up over the\nsmooth white skull.\n\nSo she ran and called her father and told him in great fright what she\nhad seen.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said the father, for he was a very wise priest-chief, \u201cthou\nshouldst not meddle with things. Thou shouldst keep quiet,\u201d said he. He\nthen arose and went into the room. Then he approached the jar, and,\nlooking down into it, said: \u201cHave mercy upon us, my child, my father.\nBecome as thou art. Disguise not thyself in hideous forms, but as thou\nhast been, be thou.\u201d And the skull rattled against the sides of the jar\nin assent.\n\n\u201cIt is well that thou shouldst marry my daughter. And we will close this\nroom that thou shalt never come forth\u201d; and again the skull clattered\nand nodded in glad assent.\n\nSo when the young girl returned, the voice came forth from the jar\nagain, and said: \u201cClose all the windows and doors, and bring me raw\ncotton if thy father have it, for he has consented that I marry you and\nthrow off my disguise.\u201d\n\nThen the girl gladly assented, and ran to get the cotton, and brought a\ngreat quantity in the room. Then when the night came the voice called\nonce more: \u201cTake me down!\u201d The girl did as she was bidden, and the young\nman again stood before her, more handsome than ever. So he married the\ngirl and both were very happy.\n\nAnd the next morning when the Sun rose the young man did not again\nchange his form, but remained as he was, and began to spin cotton\nmarvellously fine and to weave blankets and mantles of the most\nbeautiful texture, for in nothing could he fail, being a child of the\nSun-father and a god himself.\n\nSo the days and weeks passed by, and the Sun-father looked down through\nthe windows in sorrow and said: \u201cAlas! my son; I have delivered thee and\nyet thou comest not to speak with thy father. But thou shalt yet come;\nyea, verily, thou shalt yet come.\u201d\n\nSo in time the beautiful daughter of the priest-chief gave birth to two\nboys, like the children of the deer. As day succeeded day, they grew\nlarger and wiser and their limbs strengthened until they could run\nabout, and thus it happened that one day in their play they climbed up\nand played upon the house-top and on the ground below. Thus it was that\nthe people of K\u2019y\u00e1tik\u2019ia saw for the first time the two little children;\nand when they saw them they wondered greatly. Of course they wondered\ngreatly. Our grandfathers were fools.\n\n\u201cWho in the world has married the priest-chief\u2019s daughter?\u201d everybody\nasked of one another. Nobody knew; so they called a council and made all\nthe young men go to it, and they asked each one if he had secretly\nmarried the priest-chief\u2019s daughter; and every one of them said \u201cNo,\u201d\nand looked at every other one in great wonder.\n\n\u201cWho in the world can it be? It may be that some stranger has come and\nmarried her, and it may be that he stays there.\u201d So the council decided\nthat it would be well for him and the girl and their two little ones to\ndie, because they had deceived their people. Forthwith two war-priests\nmounted the house-tops and commanded the people to make haste and to\nprepare their weapons. \u201cStraighten your arrows, strengthen the backs of\nyour bows, put new points on your lances, harden your shields, and get\nready for battle, for in four days the daughter and grandchildren of the\npriest-chief and the unknown husband must die!\u201d\n\nAnd when the priest-chief\u2019s daughter heard the voices of the heralds,\nshe asked her younger sister, who had been listening, what they said.\nAnd the younger sister exclaimed: \u201cAlas! you must all die!\u201d and then she\ntold her what she had heard.\n\nNow, the young man called the old priest and told him that he knew what\nwould happen, and the old priest said: \u201cIt is well; let the will of the\ngods be done. My people know not the way of good fortune, but are fools\nand must have their way.\u201d\n\nTherefore for two days the people labored at their weapons, and on the\nmorning of the third day they began to prepare for a feast of victory.\nThen said the young man to his wife: \u201cMy little mother, dearly beloved,\non the morrow I must go forth to meet my father\u201d; for he suddenly\nremembered that he had neglected his father.\n\nWhen the Sun had nearly reached the mid-heavens, the young man said to\nhis wife: \u201cGo up and open the sky-hole. Farewell!\u201d said he, and he\nsuddenly became a cloud of mist which whirled round and round and shot\nup like a whirlwind in the rays of sunlight.\n\nWhen he neared the Sun, the Sun-father said nothing, and the young man\nwaited outside in shame. Then said the Sun-father in pretended anger:\n\u201cCome hither and sit down. Thou hast been a fool. Did I not command thee\nand thy brother?\u201d And the young man only bent his head and said: \u201cIt is\ntoo true.\u201d\n\nThen the Sun-father smiled gently, and said: \u201cThink not, neither be sad,\nmy child. I know wherefore thou comest, and I remember how thou didst\ntry to prevail upon thy younger brother to obey my commandments; and\nthat it might be well I caused thee to forget me, and to come unto the\npast that thou hast come unto. Thou shalt be a god, and shalt sit at my\nleft hand. Forever and ever shalt thou be a living good unto men, who\nwill see thee and worship thee in the evening. And through thy will\nshall rain fall upon their lands. True, I had designed, had my children\nbeen wiser, that thou shouldst remain with them and enrich them with thy\nprecious shells and stones, with thy great knowledge and good fortune.\nBut those are men very unwise and ungrateful, therefore shalt thou and\nthy children, and even thy wife, be won from thy earth-life and sit by\nmy left hand. Descend. Make four sacred hoops and entwine them with\ncotton. Make four sacred wands, such as are used in the races. Hast thou\nan unembroidered cotton mantle?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have,\u201d replied the young man.\n\n\u201cIt is well. This evening spread it out and place at each of its four\ncorners one of the sacred hoops and wands. Place all thereon that thou\nvaluest. Leave not a precious stone nor yet a shell to serve as\nparentage for others, but place all thereon. The people will gather\naround thy father\u2019s house and storm it, and then retire and storm it\nagain. Now, when the people approach the house, sit ye down, one at each\nof the four corners; grasp them and lift them upward, and gradually ye\nwill be raised. Then when the people approach nearer, lift them upward\nonce more, and ye will be raised yet farther. And when they begin to\nmount the ladders, lift ye again, and yet again, and ye shall come unto\nmy country.\u201d\n\nSo the young man descended. No change was visible in the old\npriest-chief\u2019s countenance. He had caused gay preparations to go forward\nfor the festival, for a priest knows that all things are well, and he\nmakes no change in his mind or actions. And when he asked the young man\nwhat the Sun-father had said to him, the only reply was: \u201cIt shall be\nwell. Tomorrow we go to dwell forever at the home of the Sun-father.\u201d\n\nEarly in the morning the two Priests of War mounted to the house-tops\nand called out: \u201cHasten, hasten! For the time has come and the people\nmust gather, each carrying his weapons, for today the children of our\npriest-chief must die!\u201d\n\nSo, after the morning meal, all gathered at the council, chambers of the\nwarriors, and a great company they were. The Sun had risen high.\nBrightly painted shields glittered in his light. Long lances stood black\nwith paint like the charred trunks of a burned forest; and the people\nraised their war-clubs and struck them against one another until the\ndin was like thunder.\n\n\u201c_Ho-o-o!_\u201d sounded the clash of weapons and the war-cries of the\npeople, and in the home of the priest-chief they knew they were coming.\nAll night long they had been preparing; the young man had placed all\ntheir belongings upon the blanket, and now one by one they sat down. The\nwife and the husband grasped two corners, the children grasping the two\nothers. They lifted them and slowly arose toward the ceiling. Once more,\nas the people came nearer, they lifted the corners and neared the\nsky-hole. When again they lifted the corners, they passed above the\nroof, and the people saw their shadows cast upon the ground.\n\n\u201cQuick, quick!\u201d shouted the young men. \u201cSee the shadow; they are\nescaping!\u201d\n\nAlready the arrows began to whistle past them, but the Sun cast his\nshield beneath them, and the arrows only glanced away or flew past. Once\nmore they drew the corners of the mantle upward, and as they rose higher\nand higher, the people, old and young, began to quarrel and fell to\nbeating one another, and to fighting among themselves. The old ones\ncalled the young ones fools for attempting the life of a god, and the\nyoung ones in turn called the old ones fools for counselling them to\nattempt the life of a god.\n\n\u201cThus shall ye ever be,\u201d cried the young man, \u201cfor ye are fools! Your\nfather, the Sun, had intended all things for your good, but ye were\nfools; therefore with me and mine will pass away your peace and your\ntreasures.\u201d\n\nMy children, at sunset have you not seen the little blue twinkling\nstars that sit at the left hand of the Sun as he sinks into night? Thus\ndid it come to pass in the days of the ancients, and thus it is that\nonly in the east and the west where the Sun rises and sets, even on the\nborders of the great oceans, may we find the jewels whereby we decorate\nour persons. And ever since then, my children, the world has been filled\nwith anger, and even brothers agree, then disagree, strike one another,\nand spill their own blood in foolish anger.\n\nPerhaps had men been more grateful and wiser, the Sun-father had smiled\nand dropped everywhere the treasures we long for, and not hidden them\ndeep in the earth and buried them in the shores of the sea. And perhaps,\nmoreover, all men would have smiled upon one another and never enlarged\ntheir voices nor strengthened their arms in anger toward one another.\n\nThus short is my story; and may the corn-stalks grow as long as my\nstretches, and may the will of the Holder of the Roads of Life shelter\nme from dangers as he sheltered his children in the days of the ancients\nwith the shield of his sunlight.\n\nIt is all finished. (_Tenk\u2019ia._)\n\n [Illustration: {Zu\u00f1i symbols}]\n\n\n\n\n * * * * * *\n\n\n\n\nTranscriber\u2019s note:\n\nIllustration captions in {brackets} have been added by the transcriber\nfor the convenience of the reader.\n\nArchaic and variant spelling is preserved as printed.\n\nMinor punctuation errors have been corrected.\n\nHyphen and accent usage has been made consistent.\n\nThere was one instance in which a double quotation mark was unpaired.\n\nOn page 99, there is the following:\n\n \u201c... they dressed her in her sacred cotton robes of ceremonial,\n embroidered elaborately, and adorned her ...\u201d\n\nThere may be a word missing following \u2018ceremonial\u2019 but as there is\nno way to determine what it might be, it is preserved as printed.\n\nThe following amendments have been made:\n\n Page 42--comform amended to conform--... and they taught him how\n to conform himself to it, ...\n\n Page 107, footnote 8--explaned amended to explained--This, it\n may be explained, ...\n\n Page 321--croned amended to crooned--\u201cFoolish, foolish boys!\u201d\n crooned the old grandmother.\n\n Page 456--they amended to he--\u201c... Come up and come down,\u201d said\n he.\n\nThe frontispiece has been moved to follow the title page. Other\nillustrations have been moved where necessary so that they are not in\nthe middle of a paragraph.","title":"Zu\u00f1i Folk Tales","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":124441}