! HYTHSOrTHE 
 ' RED CHILDREN 
 
 BY GILBERT L WILSON 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
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 nntt QJolUge of J^griculttttf 
 3^t dfarnell IniDcrHitH 
 
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Library Bureau Cat. No. 1137 
 
 CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
 3 1924 053 968 016 
 
The original of tiiis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924053968016 
 
" WHA-A-AH ! " HE ROARED. " IT IS THE DEATH GHOST ! ' 
 
MYTHS OF 
 THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 RETOLD BY 
 
 GILBERT L.WILSON AM 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY FREDERICK N. WILSON 
 
 P 
 
 GINN & COMPANY ID 
 
 II BOSTON • NEW YORK • CHICAGO • LONDON ?p 
 
vi MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The long winter evenings were the season for otory- 
 teUing. About the lodge fire then gathered men and 
 women, youths and maidens. Reverently they listened 
 as some aged story-teller rehearsed the doings of the 
 gods. 
 
 The myths in this little volume have been chosen 
 for their quaintness and beauty. They are taken from 
 the lore of several tribes. 
 
 Let us hope they will give to little reading folk a 
 kindly feeling for a noble but vanishing race. 
 
 One of the objects in collecting these stories is to 
 help children learn to read. All little folk enjoy simple, 
 imaginative tales, and what they enjoy they will read. 
 
 The stories contain much information about Indian 
 life and customs that is of value to an American 
 child. Many pages of our history become plainer to 
 one who knows something of Indian life. 
 
 A brief explanatory note accompanies every story. 
 It is intended that each note shall explain some cus- 
 tom or belief of Indian life or some fact of woodcraft 
 mentioned in the story. 
 
 Children are natural mimics and keenly enjoy dra- 
 matic interpretation. The reading of the myths may 
 be supplemented by a simple dramatization. Make a 
 tepee, after directions on page 132, large enough for a 
 
FOREWORD vii 
 
 child to enter; set up in a convenient corner; hang 
 an iron pot before, on a simple tripod of three sticks. 
 
 In the preparation of these stories the author claims 
 no credit but that of rewriting them for little folk's 
 tastes. The stories are true examples of Indian folk- 
 lore, and are very old. The following sources and 
 authorities are acknowledged : Frank H. Cushing's 
 Zuni Folk Tales, for " Little Ugly Boy," " The Turkey 
 Maiden"; Charles G. Leland's Algonquin Legends of 
 New England, for " Wuchowson the Wind Blower," 
 " Glooskap and the Winter Giant," " The Magic Wig- 
 wam," "Why the Baby says 'Goo'," "The Good 
 Giants " ; Silas Rand's Micmac Legends, for " Little 
 Scar Face " ; " Omaha and Ponka Texts," translated 
 by James Dorsey (Vol. VI, Contributions to North 
 American Ethnology), for " Why Turkeys have Red 
 Eyes," " The Sun Man and the Moon," " How the 
 Little Rabbit snared the Sun," "The Little Fawn"; 
 Schoolcraft's Hiawatha Myths, for " The Fisher who 
 let out Summer"; W. W. Canfield's Legends of the 
 Iroquois, for " Old Winter Man and the Spring 
 Maiden"; J. W. Powell, in First Annual Report of 
 the Bureau of American Ethnology, for " The Rain- 
 bow Snake " ; Mrs. E. A. Smith, in Second Annual 
 Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, for 
 
Vlll MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " The Flying Head "; James Mooney's " Myths of the 
 Cherokee," in Nineteenth Annual Report of the Bureau 
 of American Ethnology, for " The Little Ice Man," 
 "The Wren." 
 
 Acknowledgment is also made of the courtesy of 
 Mr. J. D. Allen, of Mandan; of the late Honorable 
 J. V. Brower, of St. Paul ; of Mr. E. R. Steinbrueck, 
 Field Officer of the State Historical Society of North 
 Dakota; and of the kindly help of many humble Indian 
 friends among the Standing Rock and Fort Berthold 
 Reservation bands. 
 
 Illustrations in this volume are by the author's 
 brother, Mr. Frederick N. Wilson. Care has been 
 taken to make the drawings archeologically correct 
 for each tribe. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Page 
 
 I. Little Ugly Boy Zuni 3 
 
 II. Why Turkeys have Red Eyes Oto 13 
 
 III. The Sun Man and the Moon . . . Omaha 21 
 
 IV. WUCHOWSON the Wind Blower Passamaquoddy 25 
 V. The Little Ice Man Cherokee 30 
 
 VI. Glooskap and the Winter Giant . . Micmac 38 
 
 VII. The Fisher who let out Summer . Chippewa 46 
 
 VIII. The Rainbow Snake . . Shoshoni 60 
 
 IX. Little Scar Face Micmac 63 
 
 X. How the Little Rabbit snared the Sun Omaha 72 
 
 XI. The Magic Wigwam Passamaquoddy 80 
 
 XII. Why the Baby says "Goo" Penobscot 87 
 
 XIII. The Wren Cherokee 93 
 
 XIV. The Good Giants . . Micmac 95 
 
 XV. The Little Fawn Omaha 103 
 
 XVI. The Turkey Maiden Zuhi 107 
 
 XVII. The Flying Head. . ... Iroquois 119 
 
 XVIII. Old Winter Man AND THE Spring Maiden /ra^aozV 122 
 
 SUPPLEMENT 
 
 Things for Children to Make 131 
 
 Explanatory Notes 147 
 
MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
-jyj. LITTLE UGLY BOY ,^ 
 1 1 
 
 A long time ago in Eagle village lived an 
 old woman and her little grandson. The little 
 boy was very ugly. His skin was of the color of 
 blue paint. His eyes were crooked and squint- 
 ing. His nose was twisted over to one side. On 
 his head grew ugly red things like red peppers. 
 
 He was so ugly that no one liked to look 
 at him. Even the village children would not 
 have him for a playmate. 
 
 " Go away, little Ugly Boy!" they would 
 say. " We do not like to play with you. You 
 are too ugly." 
 
4 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 At that time the people of Eagle village ate 
 pirion nuts and grass seeds. They dried the 
 nuts in heaps and put them away in store- 
 rooms built of stone. The grass seeds they 
 
 ground up into 
 meal. 
 
 Near the vil- 
 lage stood the 
 nut trees in a 
 grove, and there 
 the grass seeds 
 also grew. But 
 one year, when 
 the time came 
 for the nuts and 
 seeds to ripen, no 
 one dared go to gather them. 
 
 A wicked old Bear had come down from 
 the mountains and had his den in a thicket 
 near the grove. Whenever any one went out 
 to gather nuts or seeds the Bear would come 
 roaring out of his den. Some of the people 
 
 ZUNI GIRL GRINDING MEAL 
 
LITTLE UGLY BOY 5 
 
 he killed. Others he hurt or drove away. 
 Everybody was afraid of him. 
 
 One day little Ugly Boy came into the 
 house feeling hungry. His grandmother was 
 sitting on the floor making clay pots. 
 
 " Grandmother, 
 I am going out 
 to gather nuts 
 and grass seeds,", 
 he said. 
 
 " O grandson, ^"^^^ ^^^^^^^ 
 
 do not do that! The wicked Bear will catch 
 you ! He will eat you up ! " cried his grand- 
 mother. 
 
 But little Ugly Boy was not afraid. He 
 put a basket on his back and went out to the 
 place where the nut trees grew. 
 
 The ripe nuts had fallen from the trees until 
 they covered the ground. Little Ugly Boy sat 
 down on the grass to eat some of the nuts. He 
 cracked the shells with his teeth and munched 
 the rich kernels. They were very sweet. 
 
6 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Suddenly there came a crashing through the 
 trees. Little Ugly Boy looked up. There was 
 the wicked old Bear coming straight at him. 
 
 " Woof ! " roared the Bear. " What are you 
 doing in my grass patch ? What are you 
 doing among my nut trees ? " 
 
 " I am eating nuts," said little Ugly Boy. 
 He was not a bit afraid. 
 
 " You must go away ! These nuts are 
 mine," growled the Bear. 
 
 " No, they are not yours ; they are mine," 
 said little Ugly Boy. 
 
 This made the Bear angry. 
 
 " Yes, they are mine ! If you do not go I 
 will tear you to pieces ! I am bigger and 
 braver than you," he roared. 
 
 " No, they are not yours, and you are not 
 braver than I am," said little Ugly Boy, 
 laughing. 
 
 " Yes, I am braver," roared the Bear. 
 
 " No, you are not," said little Ugly Boy, 
 " and I shall prove it. Let us try to scare 
 
LITTLE UGLY BOY 7 
 
 one another. First you try to scare me, then 
 I will try to scare you. The one who scares 
 the other shall have the nuts and grass seeds." 
 
 The Bear laughed very much when he heard 
 this. 
 
 " Ha, ha ! " he roared. " Think of a little 
 fellow like you scaring me! Indeed, I am 
 very willing to try." 
 
 So little Ugly Boy sat on the ground eating 
 nuts, while the Bear ran away and hid again 
 in his den. 
 
 After a while there came a loud roar from 
 the thicket. The Bear rushed out and came 
 crashing through the trees straight at little 
 Ugly Boy. 
 
 " Wha-a-ah ! " he roared. " Woof ! I '11 eat 
 you up ! I '11 eat you up ! " 
 
 As he ran he tossed great clouds of dust 
 in the air. He broke off branches and knocked 
 over young trees with his paws. 
 
 But little Ugly Boy only laughed. He was 
 not afraid. 
 
MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The Bear was surprised. 
 " Little Ugly Boy, you are brave," he 
 growled. '.' I did not scare you a bit. Now 
 run away and see if you can scare mer 
 
 Little Ugly Boy ran 
 home again as the 
 Bear bade him. His 
 grandmother still sat 
 on the floor, making 
 clay pots. As he came 
 down the ladder from 
 the roof, he called out 
 to her: "Grandmother, 
 the wicked Bear tried 
 to scare me, but I was 
 not afraid. Now I shall 
 try to scare him. Come 
 and paint my face ; make me look terrible." 
 
 "Yes, grandson, I will do as you say," 
 answered his grandmother. 
 
 She put away the clay pots and went over 
 to the fireplace. Here she made a little heap 
 
 ZUNI LADDER 
 
LITTLE UGLY BOY 9 
 
 of ashes and drew some soot out of the chim- 
 ney. With the soot she painted one side of 
 little Ugly Boy's face a deep black. The other 
 side she painted 
 white with ashes. 
 When she had fin- 
 ished his face was 
 terrible. 
 
 She then gave 
 him an old stone 
 ax. 
 
 " Grandson, take 
 this ax," she said. ^ 
 " It is magic. If 
 you strike any- zuSi fireplace 
 
 thing with it the ground will rumble and 
 shake. Everybody will be frightened." 
 
 Little Ugly Boy took the stone ax and ran 
 again to the place where the nut trees grew. 
 
 The Bear was sitting on the ground eating 
 nuts. Little Ugly Boy ran at him, crying, 
 -'He! he! he! he! he! he! tooh!" 
 
lO MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 As he ran he struck a hollow tree with his 
 stone ax. The tree split and fell down with 
 
 ZUNI CHIMNEY 
 
 a crash. The earth heaved and shook. Rocks 
 rolled about upon the ground. The wicked 
 
LITTLE UGLY BOY II 
 
 old Bear jumped straight up into the air. 
 He thought the earth was going to sink 
 under him. 
 
 Then he saw little Ugly Boy's face. One 
 half was painted black with soot, and the 
 other half white with 
 ashes. The Bear had 
 never seen such a ter- 
 rible sight. 
 
 Little Ugly Boy 
 struck another tree 
 with his stone ax. 
 There was an awful 
 rumble. The ground shook as if it would fly 
 to pieces. 
 
 Little Ugly Boy was now quite close to the 
 Bear. Once more he struck a tree with his 
 stone ax. 
 
 At once there was a terrible earthquake. 
 Trees fell down upon the ground. Rivers rose 
 out of their beds and overflowed their banks. 
 Mountains shook as if they would topple over. 
 
 STONE AX 
 
12 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The wicked old Bear was so frightened that 
 he fell down and rolled upon his back. He 
 was scared almost to death. 
 
 " Wha-a-ah ! " he roared. " It is the Death 
 Ghost ! If I do not run away he will kill me." 
 And he jumped to his feet and ran back to 
 the mountains as fast as he could run. 
 
 Little Ugly Boy filled his basket with nuts 
 and grass seeds and went back home again. 
 He was very happy. 
 
 " Grandmother," he cried, " I scared the 
 wicked old Bear. He was terribly frightened. 
 He ran back again to the mountains ! " 
 
 Then he went up to the roof of the house 
 and called out: " Ho, you people of Eagle vil- 
 lage! Now you can gather nuts and grass 
 seeds. The wicked old Bear has gone. I 
 frightened him away with my stone ax." 
 
II 
 
 WHY TURKEYS HAVE RED EYES 
 
 In a thicket on a river bank stood the lodge 
 of a little gray Rabbit. His father and mother 
 were dead and his old Rabbit grandmother 
 kept house for him. They were very poor. 
 Often they had hardly enough to eat. 
 
 One day they sat down to dinner very 
 hungry. All they had to eat was a little hand- 
 ful of parched corn. 
 
 " Grandmother, this will not do. I must go 
 hunting and kill some meat," said the little 
 Rabbit. 
 
 His grandmother smiled at this. 
 
 1.3 
 
14 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " Grandson, you are too little. You are not 
 big enough to hunt game," she said. 
 
 OTO LODGE, OR TEPEE 
 
 But the little Rabbit took his game bag and 
 started bravely over the prairie. By and by he 
 
WHY TURKEYS HAVE RED EYES 
 
 15 
 
 saw a flock of Turkeys. They were feeding 
 among some arrow weeds. 
 
 " Oho ! " thought the little Rabbit ; " how fat 
 the Turkeys are ! But how shall I catch them ? " 
 
 He sat down 
 on the ground 
 awhile and 
 thought. At last 
 he took off his 
 robe and filled it 
 full of dry grass. 
 He then rolled it 
 up into a bundle. 
 
 " Perhaps now 
 I can catch the 
 Turkeys," he said. 
 
 He put the 
 bundle on his 
 back and began to run. 
 Turkeys raised their heads up out of the 
 weeds. They were surprised to see him run- 
 ning with a bundle on his back. 
 
 As he came near, the 
 
i6 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " Ho, little brother ! why are you running 
 so fast ? " asked an old Turkey. 
 
 " Because the villagers are going to give a 
 dance. They wish me to sing for them. I am 
 in a great hurry. The songs are in this bundle 
 on my back," answered the little Rabbit. 
 
 " Oho ! he says he 
 has songs. How won- 
 derful ! " gobbled all 
 the Turkeys. 
 
 Then they called out 
 to the little Rabbit: 
 " Little brother, come 
 and sing for us. We, 
 too, wish to dance." 
 " But I have not time. I am in a great 
 hurry," answered the little Rabbit. 
 
 " No, no ! do not go ! Sing for us, — only 
 a little while," cried all the Turkeys. 
 
 " Very well, I will sing for you a little while ; 
 but you must hasten. Come, all of you, and 
 stand around me," said the little Rabbit. 
 
 WILD TURKEY 
 
WHY TURKEYS HAVE RED EYES 
 
 17 
 
 All the Turkeys came and stood in a circle 
 around the little gray Rabbit. When all were 
 ready the little Rab- 
 bit said : " I will sit 
 in the middle and 
 sing. You, who are 
 fat, must pass close 
 to me as you dance. 
 But you must all 
 shut your 
 eyes; if you 
 open them your 
 eyes will be red ! " 
 
 All the Turkeys 
 shut their eyes and 
 began to dance in a 
 circle around the 
 little Rabbit. As 
 they danced he sang : 
 
 DANCING INDIAN 
 
 ' Alas for him who looks ! 
 
 Eyes will be red ; eyes will be red ! 
 Flirt your tails out widely ! " 
 
l8 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 But as the fat Turkeys went by, the little 
 Rabbit knocked them down and put them 
 into his game bag. 
 
 At last a young Turkey grew tired of hold- 
 ing his eyes shut. He opened one eye a little 
 and looked around. The little Rabbit was just 
 putting a fat Turkey into his bag. At once 
 the young Turkey began to scream : 
 
 " Look ye ! look ye ! 
 The Rabbit is killing us ! 
 Look ye ! look ye ! " 
 
 At this all the Turkeys opened their eyes and 
 flew away with a great noise. 
 
 When the little Rabbit came home he 
 was quite proud of what he had done. He 
 gave the bag of Turkeys to his grandmother 
 and said: "Grandmother, here is a bag full 
 of game. Watch it while I go for some 
 sticks to make spits. But do not open the 
 bag." 
 
 The little Rabbit then went out after the 
 spits. While he was gone his grandmother 
 
WHY TURKEYS HAVE RED EYES 
 
 19 
 
 watched the bag of game. But she wished 
 very much to know what was inside. 
 
 " Surely it will do no harm to look," she said 
 at last. " I will open the bag only a little bit." 
 
 She untied the string about the mouth of 
 the bag. At once the Turkeys burst out, 
 screaming and flapping ///A/if>^y/M' 
 
 their great wings. M'l/MmMM 
 
 They knocked the old ' w\ 
 Rabbit grandmother (g 
 down on the floor. 
 Then they all flew out 
 through the smoke 
 hole. The old grand- 
 mother sprang up but caught only one small 
 Turkey by the legs. 
 
 When the little gray Rabbit came home 
 again he was angry. 
 
 " Grandmother, I told you not to open the 
 bag! Now we shall have only one small 
 Turkey to eat," he cried. 
 
 " It is even so, grandson," she said, weeping. 
 
 GRAY RABBIT, OR COTTONTAIL 
 
20 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 So the little Rabbit and his grandmother 
 sat down with only one small Turkey between 
 them. 
 
 Ever since then, the Indians say, Turkeys 
 have had red eyes. This is because they 
 opened their eyes when the little gray Rabbit 
 sang for them. 
 
Ill 
 
 THE SUN MAN AND THE MOON 
 
 In his yellow earth lodge, 
 
 By the prairie wide, 
 Lived the golden Sun Man, 
 
 With his shining bride. 
 And his lovely bride wife — 
 
 Could you ever guess? — 
 Was the gentle Moon Squaw, 
 
 In her silver dress. 
 
 From his yellow earth lodge, 
 With the morning light, 
 
 Came the golden Sun Man, 
 Shining round and bright; 
 
22 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 And the hunters hastened, 
 Some to chase the deer, 
 
 Some to slay the antelope, 
 Buffalo, or bear. 
 
 When the falling twilight 
 
 Deepened o'er the plain, 
 And the silver Moon Squaw 
 
 Softly shone again, 
 Home the hunters hastened. 
 
 East and north and west. 
 Rolled them in their bison robes 
 
 And lay down to rest. 
 
 This the golden Sun Man 
 
 Did not like a bit; 
 Hot he grew and angry 
 
 When he thought of it. 
 " Ho ! you wicked Moon Squaw ! " 
 
 To his wife he cried ; 
 " Do not call my hunters back 
 
 From the prairies wide ! " 
 
THE SUN MAN AND THE MOON 23 
 
 Said the gentle Moon Squaw, 
 
 " Do not chase away 
 All my silver sky stars 
 
 With your yellow day ! 
 When the night to slumber 
 
 Calls the Indian men, 
 Do not shine each morning, 
 
 And waken them again." 
 
 But the angry Sun Man 
 
 Hot and hotter grew; 
 Straight his leather moccasin 
 
 At his wife he threw. 
 " Ho ! you wicked Moon Squaw ! 
 
 I will climb the sky. 
 O'er the earth, a light for men, 
 
 Shining bright and high." 
 
 Laughed the silver Moon Squaw: 
 
 " Everywhere you go 
 In the starry sky path 
 
 I will follow too. 
 
24 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Though the day shall summon 
 The hunters to the plain, 
 
 I will come with darkness 
 And call them back again." 
 
 Still the golden Sun Man 
 
 In the sky is seen ; 
 Every day he summons 
 
 The hunters to the plain ; 
 But the silver Moon Squaw 
 
 Follows in his path, 
 Calls the hunters home again, 
 
 Laughing at his wrath. 
 
IV 
 WUCHOWSON^ THE WIND BLOWER 
 
 An Indian had his wigwam near the sea, 
 at a place where there was good fishing. He 
 often went out in his canoe and speared fish, 
 or caught them in his nets. 
 
 When fall came and the geese were flying 
 South, the weather grew windy. A gale arose 
 on the sea, and the waves roared and foamed 
 against the shore. The Indian had never seen 
 it blow so hard in his life. 
 
 Day after day went by, but still it blew. 
 The wind howled and the waves rolled like 
 mountains. 
 
 1 Wu chow'son. 
 
 25 
 
26 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Each morning the Indian dragged his canoe 
 down to the water's edge and made ready his 
 nets; but he could neither paddle nor steer 
 his canoe in such a gale. He became quite 
 vexed at last. 
 
 "It is Wuchowson the Wind Blower who 
 does this," he said. " He is fanning the wind 
 
 WILD GEESE 
 
 with his wings. I will ask him not to move 
 his wings so fast. Then the waves will go 
 down and I can spear fish once more." 
 
 He put away his nets, took his bow and 
 some pemmican,^ and started off. After many 
 
 Pem'mi kan. 
 
WUCHOWSON THE WIND BLOWER 
 
 27 
 
 weeks he came to the place in the North where 
 Wuchowson lives. 
 
 Here he saw a tall rock rising up at the 
 edge of the sky. On the rock sat Wuchowson. 
 His broad wings were spread like two clouds, 
 and when he swept 
 them through the air 
 the wind howled and 
 roared and rushed out 
 over the sea. 
 
 Wuchowson was a 
 great white eagle, taller 
 than a hill. The In- 
 dian climbed to the 
 top of the rock where 
 the great eagle sat. 
 He spoke boldly to 
 Wuchowson. 
 
 " Ho, Wind Blower ! " he said ; " do not move 
 your wings so fast. The wind raises the 
 waves so that I cannot paddle my canoe nor 
 use my nets." 
 
 EAGLE 
 
28 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 But Wuchowson looked down at the Indian 
 and laughed. He swept his broad wings 
 through the air and the wind roared louder 
 than ever. Then he said : " Go away ! I do 
 / not care if the wind does blow the 
 
 waves. Long before men went upon 
 the sea I moved my wings and 
 screamed." 
 
 This made the Indian quite angry. 
 His eyes glinted like fire. 
 
 "Very well, Wind Blower," he 
 cried ; " I will tie your wings so 
 that you cannot move them." 
 
 He threw the great eagle down 
 upon his back, tied his wings with 
 ropes, and dragged him to a dark 
 FISH SPEAR place between two rocks. There the 
 Indian left him and went home. 
 
 He was quite happy when he came to his 
 wigwam. He could now go out in his canoe 
 and fish whenever he liked. The wind had 
 died and there was a calm. 
 
WUCHOWSON THE WIND BLOWER 29 
 
 But by and by a change came over the sea. 
 The water grew foul and stagnant. A thick 
 white scum spread over all its surface. 
 
 Many fishes died and floated upon the water 
 The Indian could not even go out upon the sea 
 in his canoe. He could not push his paddle 
 through the thick scum. 
 
 At last he left his wigwam and set out 
 again for the North. After many weeks he 
 came to the place where Wuchowson lay. 
 
 He lifted the great eagle out of the dark 
 place and set him again on the tall rock. Then 
 he loosed one of the Wind Blower's wings. 
 The other wing he left tied as before. 
 
 Wuchowson began to move his great wing 
 and the wind blew once more. Soon the thick 
 scum went away from the sea. 
 
 But the winds never blow so hard now, for 
 Wuchowson can move only one of his wings. 
 
V 
 THE LITTLE ICE MAN 
 
 An Indian village stood by a deep forest. 
 It was a large village and had a council 
 house. A spring bubbled out of the ground 
 near by, and a tall poplar tree rose in the 
 forest beyond. 
 
 Autumn came; the winds blew, and the 
 ground in the forest was covered with leaves. 
 The Indians fetched coals and set fire to the 
 dry leaves to burn out the brush. 
 
 But the flames spread and many forest trees 
 were burned. The wind blew sparks and burn- 
 ing leaves into the poplar tree until its branches 
 caught fire. The smoke was thick and black. 
 
 3° 
 
THE LITTLE ICE MAN 31 
 
 The Indians came out and • watched the 
 poplar burn. The hot flames roared through 
 the thick tree top. One by one the branches 
 fell, until only the trunk was left. It, too, 
 came down at last with a crash. 
 
 The Indians were glad when they saw the 
 trunk fall. They were afraid their village 
 might be set on fire by flying sparks. 
 
 " The tree has fallen ; now the fire will die," 
 they cried. 
 
 But the fire did not die. The roots of the 
 tree still burned, and the fire went into the 
 ground. A deep pit opened in the place where 
 the trunk had stood. From the pit came flame 
 and hot smoke. 
 
 The Indians became frightened. They 
 thought the world was going to burn up. 
 
 " Let us pour water on the fire ; if the pit 
 grows, the world will burn," they cried. 
 
 The women carried water from the spring in 
 kettles and poured it into the pit. Clouds of hot 
 steam arose, but the fire burned on as before. 
 
32 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " Fetch more kettles ! Pour on more water ! " 
 cried the Indians. 
 
 The women ran to the village for more 
 kettles. Young girls brought 
 bowls and clay pots and all 
 poured water into the pit. 
 But the fire burned, hot as 
 ever. 
 
 The Indians became more 
 and more frightened. The pit 
 was growing and the fire was 
 coming close to their village. 
 Their chief called them to a 
 council in the council house. 
 
 "What shall we do?" he 
 asked. " If the fire is not put 
 out the world will burn. We 
 shall all die." 
 
 He sat down, and there was 
 silence in the council. At last 
 
 OLD MEN'S WALKING ^^ ^J^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^ j^^^ 
 
 STICKS (Dakota '■ 
 
 Indians) near the door. He was old 
 
THE LITTLE ICE MAN 
 
 33 
 
 and thin, and he had to lean on a stick as 
 he spoke. 
 
 " I will tell you what to do," he said. " Go 
 to the little Ice Man. He lives in the North 
 in a wigwam of ice. He will know how to 
 put out the fire." 
 
 The Indians 
 had never heard 
 of the Ice Man 
 and his wigwam. 
 Some laughed, 
 thinking the old 
 man was foolish ; 
 but their chief 
 said to him: 
 " Grandfather, we will do as you say. We will 
 choose three swift runners. They shall go to the 
 Ice Man and ask him to put out the fire." 
 
 So the Indians chose three young men who 
 were swift runners and said to them : " Go to 
 the Ice Man. Tell him of the pit and ask him 
 to put out the big fire." 
 
 MOCCASINS 
 
34 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The three young men put on new moccasins 
 and hastened away. All day and all that night 
 they ran. On the next day they came to the 
 North where the Ice Man lives. 
 
 Here they found a great wigwam made of 
 ice. It was roofed like a cabin. A thick bear- 
 skin hung over the door. 
 
 The young men pushed the bearskin aside 
 and went in. They found the Ice Man sitting 
 on the floor on a mat. 
 
 He was a funny-looking little man. His 
 hair hung over his shoulders in two braids. 
 His face was wrinkled and his skin was 
 puckered like old leather. But he had kind 
 eyes. 
 
 He looked up, smiling, as the young men 
 entered, and made a place for them by the fire. 
 
 " Come and sit on the other side of the fire, 
 away from the door," he said. 
 
 They sat down and the Ice Man gave them 
 his pipe to smoke. When they were rested 
 the eldest of the young men spoke. 
 
THE LITTLE ICE MAN 35 
 
 " Grandfather, near our village is a fire. It 
 is in a pit. Each day the pit grows deeper 
 and we fear the world will burn. We have 
 come to ask you to put out the fire." 
 
 For a while the Ice Man did not answer. 
 He took his pipe again and sat on the mat, 
 smoking. At last he laid the pipe down upon 
 the floor. 
 
 " I will put out the fire," he said. 
 
 As he spoke he began to unplait the braids 
 of his hair. When the ends were loose he 
 took them up in his hand and struck them 
 over his open palm. 
 
 At once a cold wind began to blow. It 
 seemed to come from the ends of the loose 
 hair. 
 
 The Ice Man struck his palm a second time 
 and rain began to fall. 
 
 When he struck his palm the third time 
 sleet fell with the rain. Colder grew the air, 
 and the floor of the wigwam became wet and 
 icy with the sleet. 
 
36 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 But the Ice Man had not done. Once more 
 he struck his palm with the loose hair. 
 
 The rain now turned to hail; the wind 
 moaned; the walls of the wigwam creaked 
 and groaned; hailstones as big as owls' eggs 
 rolled upon the floor. 
 
 The Ice Man looked at the three young 
 men and smiled. 
 
 " Go home," he said. " When you come to 
 your village wait for me. You will hear me 
 in the storm." 
 
 The young men hastened home and told the 
 villagers what the Ice Man had said. The next 
 day all came out and stood near the burning pit. 
 
 In a little while a black cloud came up 
 in the North and overspread the sky. Over- 
 head the wind whistled and moaned. The fire 
 in the pit burned fiercer than ever. 
 
 Cold rain and sleet then began to fall. The 
 raindrops sputtered as they fell in the hot fire. 
 
 Suddenly with the rain there came a fierce 
 storm of hail. The Indians covered their 
 
THE LITTLE ICE MAN 37 
 
 heads and ran shouting to their wigwams ; 
 hailstones as big as owls' eggs were falling 
 from the sky. 
 
 Harder and harder fell the hail. The fire 
 in the pit roared and white steam went up in 
 clouds. A whirlwind drove the hailstones into 
 every corner of the burning pit. 
 
 At last the storm ceased ; the clouds rolled 
 av/ay; the sun shone again and the Indians 
 came out of their wigwams. 
 
 In the place where the pit had been there 
 was a wide lake. 
 
 The Indians came and stood on the shore 
 of the lake. Deep under the water they heard 
 a sound. 
 
 Hiss-s-s it went, as if some one were pour- 
 ing water on a hot fire. 
 
VI 
 GLOOSKAPi AND THE WINTER GIANT 
 
 There once lived a man whose name was 
 Glooskap. He kept two tame wolves about 
 his wigwam. One wolf was white like day; 
 the other was black like night. 
 Glooskap called them his hunt- 
 ing dogs. 
 
 He often took them out with 
 him to hunt, when he would say- 
 to them, " Dogs, grow big ! " 
 ^°^^ At once the two wolves 
 
 would grow as big as bears. 
 
 When he had done hunting, Glooskap 
 would say, " Dogs, grow small ! " and the 
 
 ^ Gloos'kap. 
 38 
 
GLOOSKAP AND THE WINTER GIANT 39 
 
 wolves would become 
 small as before. , 
 
 Glooskap's wigwam 
 stood alone, for he did 
 not like to dwell near 
 other people. His old 
 grandmother cooked for 
 him and mended his 
 moccasins. 
 
 One dav he came caribou, or northern deer 
 
 home with a fat deer on his shoulders. He 
 threw the deer on the ground before the door 
 
 and went into the wig- 
 ^ . wam. His grandmother 
 
 was stirring a pot of fat 
 on the fire. 
 
 " Here, grandmother," 
 he cried, " I have brought 
 you some meat. I am 
 tired of staying in the 
 wigwam ; I am going 
 EARTHEN COOKING POT oti ou a joumey. 
 
40 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 He put a knife in his belt, took his bow, 
 and went out without saying another word. 
 His grandmother stopped stirring the fat and 
 watched him as he went out of the door. 
 
 " My grandson is brave, — he will do some- 
 thing wonderful," she said ; and she began to 
 
 stir the fat again over the 
 fire. 
 
 When Glooskap left the 
 
 .vlnj^ 'I'w'f ^'^'■'5 wigwam he set off toward 
 
 y^f^ . ^^^^'J^ the North. It was summer 
 
 ^^*"' when he started, but after 
 
 a time the air began to 
 grow colder, the forest leaves turned red and 
 fell to the ground, and the rivers froze hard 
 with ice. Glooskap had to put on snow- 
 shoes, for the ground had become covered 
 with snow. 
 
 He came at last to the far North, where he 
 saw a tall wigwam standing alone in the snow. 
 Snowdrifts were piled about its sides and a 
 white bearskin hung over the door. Glooskap 
 
GLOOSKAP AND THE WINTER GIANT 41 
 
 lifted the bearskin and looked in. There sat 
 a great giant inside. 
 
 The giant was old. Deep wrinkles were in 
 his face, and his hair was white like snow. 
 Glooskap wondered who he was. 
 
 " Grandfather, who are you ? " he asked. 
 
 " I am Winter ; I bring 
 the snow and ice," an- 
 swered the giant. 
 
 He then invited Gloos- 
 kap to come into the 
 wigwam. 
 
 Glooskap stooped his 
 head under the bearskin 
 and went in. The giant 
 gave him a seat beside 
 the fire and filled a pipe 
 with sweet tobacco. As they smoked, the 
 giant told wonderful tales of olden times. 
 Glooskap was astonished. 
 
 "Wonderful! I never heard such strange 
 stories," he cried. 
 
 TOBACCO 
 
42 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 But as the giant talked a change came over 
 Glooskap. He grew chilled ; his head began 
 to nod ; his eyes closed ; the pipe fell out of 
 his mouth. 
 
 He rolled over at last and lay on the floor 
 like a fat, sleepy toad. The Winter Giant had 
 
 charmed him to sleep. 
 For six months he 
 lay on the giant's floor. 
 The charm then left him 
 and Glooskap awoke. 
 He was angry when he 
 found what the giant 
 had done. 
 
 "The Winter Giant has mocked me; but 
 perhaps I shall mock him," he thought. 
 
 Then he said aloud to the giant, " Grand- 
 father, I must be going." And he left the 
 wigwam and went away toward the South. 
 
 For weeks he journeyed on, until he came 
 to the Summer country, where strange little 
 men were dancing under the trees. They were 
 
 TOAD 
 
GLOOSKAP AND THE WINTER GIANT 43 
 
 the Little People of the South. As they danced 
 they shook rattles and sang. 
 
 The Summer Woman was their queen. A 
 wee little woman she was, scarcely taller than 
 a warrior's foot. All the little 
 men loved her and obeyed her. 
 
 Glooskap was glad when he 
 saw the little Summer Woman. 
 
 " I will steal her and take her 
 away with me ; then I can mock 
 the Winter Giant," he thought. 
 
 He went into the forest, killed 
 a moose, and cut its skin into 
 a long string. This he wound 
 into a ball and came again to the place where 
 the little men were dancing. 
 
 When her people were not looking, Gloos- 
 kap caught up the little queen and ran off with 
 her. As he ran he unwound the moose-string 
 ball and let the loose end drag behind him. 
 
 The little men were terribly angry. They 
 shouted shrill cries and ran after Glooskap, 
 
 TURTLE-SHELL 
 RATTLE 
 
44 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 hoping to catch him. Soon they found the end 
 of the moose-skin string which he had dropped. 
 
 " Let us pull at the string ! It is tied to 
 Glooskap. Thus we shall stop him," they 
 cried. 
 
 So all the little men pulled stoutly at the 
 moose-skin string, thinking they were pulling 
 Glooskap; but they were only unwinding the 
 ball. 
 
 Once more Glooskap came to the Winter 
 Giant's wigwam. The giant welcomed him, 
 for he hoped to charm Glooskap again ; but 
 this time Glooskap had the little Summer 
 Woman hid under his coat. 
 
 As before, he went into the wigwam and 
 sat down. Again the giant gave him a pipe 
 full of sweet tobacco. As they smoked, Gloos- 
 kap told wonderful tales to the giant. 
 
 By and by a change came over the giant. 
 Sweat ran down his face; his voice grew 
 weak ; his legs trembled ; water ran out of ^ 
 his eyes. 
 
GLOOSKAP AND THE WINTER GIANT 45 
 
 At last he fell down on the floor and melted 
 away. The wigwam fell in and melted, too. 
 Nothing was left of it but a bare place on the 
 ground. 
 
 The snow melted and ran into the rivers. 
 Grass and flowers came out of the ground. 
 Everything was beautiful, for spring had come. 
 
 And all the little men came, too. They had 
 followed the moose-skin string which Gloos- 
 kap had let fall behind him. 
 
 Glooskap gave the little Summer Woman 
 back to them, and the little men danced and 
 sang once more. 
 
 Then Glooskap went back to his home. 
 
 Bureau Nature Study, 
 
VII 
 
 THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 
 
 I. The Red Squirrel 
 
 A Fisher had his wigwam on the shore of 
 a lake. It was a good place for winter camp- 
 ing. There were fish to be caught through 
 the ice, and the waters of the lake were sweet 
 to drink. In the forest near by were many 
 deer. 
 
 While her husband hunted, the Fisher's wife 
 watched the fire and cared for their little son. 
 The little boy was just old enough to hunt 
 small game. 
 
 One day the little boy's father brought home 
 
 a bow and a small quiver of arrows. 
 
 46 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 
 
 47 
 
 " Little son," he said, " you must learn how 
 to hunt. Take this bow. In the forest are 
 birds and squirrels. Go and shoot them with 
 your arrows." 
 
 The little boy was quite proud to own a 
 bow. Every day, as his father bade him, he 
 went into the for- 
 est to hunt birds. 
 
 But it was bit- 
 ter cold in the for- 
 est. Deep snow 
 was on the ground, 
 and many of the 
 birds had flown .^%j^ 
 away. Often the 
 little boy came 
 home with his fingers almost frozen. 
 
 One evening he came back weeping. He had 
 seen no birds, and he was chilled and cold. 
 
 As he came in sight of the wigwam a red 
 Squirrel ran into his path. The boy raised 
 his bow to shoot. 
 
 FISHER OR pennant's MARTEN 
 
48 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " Little brother, little brother, do not shoot 
 me ! " cried the Squirrel. 
 
 The little boy put down his bow. He was 
 surprised to hear the Squirrel speak. 
 
 " Little brother," said the 
 Squirrel, " I know why you 
 weep. It is because you are 
 cold and have seen no birds. 
 You must ask your father 
 to let out summer." 
 
 " Why should I do that ? " 
 said the little boy. 
 
 " If summer is here the 
 air will be warm and the 
 birds will come again. Nuts 
 will grow on the trees and 
 I shall then have some- 
 thing to eat," answered 
 the Squirrel. 
 
 The little boy did not 
 know what to think of this. He went home 
 wondering what it could mean. 
 
 BOW AND QUIVER 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 49 
 
 Before it was dark the Fisher came in from 
 hunting. When the little boy saw his father 
 he began to weep again. 
 
 " Little son, what is the matter ? " asked the 
 Fisher. 
 
 " Father, I am cold, and I have seen no 
 birds. I want you to let out summer. Then 
 the air will be warm 
 and the birds will come 
 again," answered the 
 little boy. 
 
 The Fisher sat and 
 thought. He drew a 
 pipe from his pouch 
 and smoked it a long 
 time. At last he spoke: ^^°' °^ ^'^^' ^'^"'^'^^'^ 
 " Little son, do not weep. I will try to let out 
 summer; but it will be no easy thing to do." 
 
 II. The Big Head 
 
 The next day the Fisher made a feast in his 
 wigwam and invited five friends. They were 
 
50 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 the Otter, the Beaver, the Lynx, the Badger, 
 
 and the Wolverine. 
 
 The friends came, each bringing a wooden 
 
 bowl and a spoon. The Fisher's wife had 
 
 roasted a fat bear, and the feast lasted all day. 
 
 When evening came the 
 Fisher pushed aside his 
 bowl and said : " My 
 friends, I am going to 
 the sky country to- let 
 out summer. Come with 
 me. The journey is long, 
 but you are brave and 
 will not fear to go." 
 The friends thought 
 
 for a while before they answered. Then the 
 
 Otter spoke : " We will go. We are not afraid." 
 They started the next morning. The Fisher 
 
 led ; the others followed, stepping in his tracks. 
 
 For days they went on, hardly stopping to eat 
 
 or sleep. On the twentieth day they came to 
 
 the foot of a high mountain. 
 
 BUFFALO-HORN SPOONS 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 
 
 51 
 
 Here they found tracks of moccasins in the 
 snow. The hard crust was trampled down and 
 blood lay on the ground, as if some one had 
 killed a deer. 
 
 The friends stopped. They had no wish to 
 climb the mountain, for evening was already 
 near. None of them knew which way to go. 
 
 "Let us follow the tracks," said the Fisher 
 at last. 
 
 He started off 
 as the tracks led, 
 and the others fol- 
 lowed. They soon 
 came to a bark 
 wigwam hidden in 
 a hollow. 
 
 As they drew 
 near, a queer-looking man came to the door. 
 He was like a big, ugly head, with neither 
 arms nor hands. Crooked teeth stood in his 
 mouth and he had fierce eyes. But he spoke 
 kindly to the friends. 
 
 OTTER 
 
52 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 "Come into my wigwam," he said. " I will 
 cook you some meat, and you can sleep to- 
 night on my bearskins." 
 
 They went in, and the Big Head fetched 
 from a corner a large wooden bowl. He put 
 in some meat and set the bowl on the fire like 
 a kettle. The fire did it no harm. 
 
 When the meat had boiled, the Big Head 
 took the bowl from the fire and set it before 
 the friends. They wondered to see him do 
 this without arms or hands. He moved so 
 quickly that they did not see how he lifted 
 the bowl. 
 
 But he looked queer, stumping about on his 
 short legs. His big, ugly face made so many 
 odd motions that the Otter could not keep 
 from laughing. This angered the Big Head. 
 
 " You wicked Otter, how dare you laugh at 
 me ! " he screamed. And he sprang on the 
 Otter's neck to strangle him. 
 
 Over they rolled, fighting and struggling 
 fiercely. It was well for the Otter that his 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 
 
 53 
 
 fur was sleek. Stretching his long body, he 
 wTiggled out between the Big Head's legs and 
 ran out of the door into 
 the night. 
 
 The Fisher and his four 
 friends stayed all night in 
 the wigwam. Early the 
 next morning they made 
 ready to go. The Big Head 
 then said to them : " I know 
 you are going to the sky 
 country to let out summer. 
 Do not fear. Journey for 
 twenty days more, until you 
 come to the top of a high 
 mountain. You will then 
 be near the sky." 
 
 The friends thanked him 
 and went on. A little way 
 from the wigwam they found the Otter. He 
 had slept in the snow and was nigh dead 
 with hunger. 
 
 FIFE AND TOBACCO POUCH 
 
54 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The Fisher had some of the meat which the 
 Big Head had given him. This he gave to 
 the Otter and all went on through the snow. 
 
 III. The Sky Country 
 
 On the twentieth day they came again to a 
 high mountain, and reached the top after a 
 hard climb. Here they rested awhile. The 
 Fisher drew his pipe from its pouch and gave 
 
 it to his friends 
 to smoke. At last 
 he arose. 
 
 "Who will break 
 a hole in the sky?" 
 he asked. 
 
 "I will," cried 
 
 the Otter; "I know 
 
 how to jump." 
 
 He stood, bent his lithe body, and leaped. 
 
 High up he went, like a black arrow ; but he 
 
 did not reach the sky. In a moment he fell 
 
 BEAVER 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 55 
 
 back, and rolled down the side of the mountain 
 stunned. When he opened his eyes his head 
 swam and he was aching in every bone. 
 
 " Let others break the sky; I have enough! " 
 he cried, as he limped home over the snow. 
 
 The Fisher and his four friends were still 
 on the top of the ^\A 
 
 mountain. 
 
 " Let me try to 
 break the sky," 
 said the Beaver. 
 
 He bent his 
 back like a great 
 bow and leaped 
 upward ; but he 
 went only a lit- 
 tle higher than the Otter had gone. 
 
 Then the Lynx and the Badger tried. They, 
 too, could not reach the sky. Only the Wol- 
 verine was left. 
 
 " Let me try ; my father taught me how to 
 jump," he cried. 
 
 LYNX 
 
56 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 He humped his back, put his nose in the 
 air, and leaped. High overhead he went, until 
 he looked like a black speck among the clouds. 
 In a little while he fell back ; but he had 
 touched the sky with his head. 
 
 Again he leaped. This time he struck the 
 sky and cracked it. When he leaped the third 
 
 time he passed 
 through, breaking 
 a great hole. 
 
 The Fisher then 
 leaped up after him, 
 and the two friends 
 found themselves 
 in the sky country. 
 It was a good land. 
 There were mountains and rivers and bright 
 grasses. The white sun shone overhead and 
 the air was warm and sweet. Everywhere was 
 the soft, beautiful summer. 
 
 A little way off stood a village of wigwams. 
 Thither the two friends now made their way. 
 
 BADGER 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 57 
 
 They found the villagers gone, but in the wig- 
 wams hung wooden cages full of many kinds 
 of birds. The Fisher thought of his little son. 
 
 " If I break the cages the birds will fly down 
 to earth," he said. 
 
 All this time the warm air was pouring 
 out of the sky. It made a loud noise as it 
 rushed through 
 the great hole. 
 This alarmed the 
 villagers. They 
 all came running 
 home to see 
 what it was that 
 made the noise. 
 
 The Wolver- 
 ine saw them coming and leaped through 
 the hole to the top of the mountain, again. 
 The Fisher stayed to let out the birds. 
 
 At last all the cages were broken and he, 
 too, ran to the big hole. But the villagers had 
 closed it ; they did not want the warm air to 
 
 WOLVERINE 
 
58 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 quit the sky, for they feared winter would 
 then come into the sky country. 
 
 That, too, is why we have summer only part 
 of the year. Had no one closed the hole, all 
 the warm air would have left the sky and 
 we should have summer every month. 
 
 The villagers were fiercely angered when 
 they saw the Fisher. 
 
 " There he is — he who broke our sky ! Kill 
 him ! kill him ! " they cried. And they began 
 to shoot at him with their arrows. 
 
 He fled far to the North. Near the end of 
 the sky he climbed a tree and tried to hide in 
 its thick branches. The villagers came below 
 and shot upward through the tree top. Toward 
 evening one of them wounded the Fisher in 
 the tail. Then they left him. 
 
 Night had come, and all was still, when the 
 Fisher climbed down from the tree. He was 
 faint and bleeding. He crept a little way, 
 staggered, and fell upon his side. 
 
THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 59 
 
 " I am dying," he whispered ; " but my little 
 son will be happy. I have let out summer. 
 Now the snow will go, and birds will come 
 again into the forest." 
 
 In the morning the villagers found him 
 lying on the sky. He was dead. 
 
 " Let him lie," they said ; " he shall be a 
 warning to men. Then they will not try again 
 to come into our sky." 
 
 When the night is bright the Fisher may 
 still be seen among the stars. The arrow is 
 sticking in his tail. 
 
mr-'^w--^ 
 
 VIII 
 THE RAINBOW SNAKE 
 
 Have you heard of the beautiful Rainbow 
 Snake 
 
 Whose scales move to and fro, 
 As he arches his back to the blue sky floor, 
 
 And scratches off rain and snow? 
 
 Away in the West, where the Indians dwell, 
 
 In the land of the buffalo. 
 They tell this tale of the Rainbow Snake 
 
 Who sends down rain and snow. 
 
 Long, long ago, ere the white man came. 
 
 The rivers and lakes ran low, 
 
 60 
 
THE RAINBOW SNAKE 6l 
 
 And the brooks dried up, and the fishes died, 
 And the elk and the buffalo. 
 
 And the Indians cried, " Alas, we die ! 
 
 No longer the rose pods grow ; 
 And the rivers and brooks and ponds are dry. 
 
 For there falls no rain nor snow." 
 
 Then a little Snake wriggled him out of the 
 grass 
 
 And said, " My brothers, I know -- 
 That if I can only climb up to the sky, 
 
 I can send down rain and snow. 
 
 " For of blue, blue ice is the blue sky floor. 
 And it maketh the cold winds blow ; 
 
 And if I can only climb up to the ice, 
 I can scrape down rain and snow." 
 
 So the little Snake stretched and stretched 
 himself, 
 
 And made himself grow and grow. 
 Until he was long as a river is long 
 
 Whose waters to ocean flow. 
 
62 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 And he climbed the clouds to the cold ice sky, 
 Where his tail and his head drop low, 
 
 As he arches his back to the blue sky floor 
 And scratches off rain and snow. 
 
 For he wriggles, and wriggles, and wriggles 
 himself, 
 
 And his scales move to and fro, 
 And scrape the ice sky in the winter time. 
 
 And then we have beautiful snow. 
 
 But when in the summer he wriggles himself, 
 And the clouds roll over the plain, 
 
 The ice flakes melt as they fall to earth. 
 And then we have beautiful rain. 
 
 And still in the sky is the Rainbow Snake, 
 
 The serpent of long ago; 
 And he wriggles, and wriggles, and wriggles 
 himself, 
 
 And scratches off rain and snow. 
 
IX 
 LITTLE SCAR FACE 
 
 In a village by a lake dwelt a young war- 
 rior named Team/ He had no kinsfolk except 
 a sister who kept house for him. She was 
 called the White Maiden. 
 
 No one had ever seen Team. The villagers 
 could hear his footsteps as he went by, and 
 they could see his tracks in the snow, but 
 Team himself they never saw ; he was 
 invisible. 
 
 One day Team's sister called the village 
 maidens to the council house. When all were 
 
 ^ Team. 
 63 
 
64 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 come in and sat in a great circle in the council 
 room she said to them : " My brother Team 
 wishes to marry. He is a young man and very 
 rich, but he is invisible ; no one can see him 
 who is not gentle and good. Therefore, if any 
 maiden can see him, he will have her for his 
 wife." 
 
 The village maidens were all joyful when 
 they heard this. They knew Team was young 
 and rich. In her heart each hoped to have 
 him for her husband. 
 
 Every evening, then, as the sun set, some 
 of the maidens would go down by the lake to 
 Team's wigwam. The White Maiden always 
 invited them to come in, and they would sit 
 and watch by the wigwam fire. 
 
 By and by, as they sat, they would hear 
 footsteps. Then the door flap would open and 
 some one would enter. But the maidens could 
 never see any one. 
 
 At the other end of the village, near the 
 bushes, lived an old man with his three 
 
LITTLE SCAR FACE 65 
 
 daughters. The two elder daughters were 
 young women, but the youngest was only 
 a girl. 
 
 The elder sisters were very unkind to the 
 little girl. They made her do all the work and 
 gave her only bones and scraps to eat. 
 
 But the eldest was the more unkind. Often, 
 when she was angry, she would throw ashes 
 and hot coals in her little sister's face. In this 
 way the little girl's hair was burned and her 
 face became marked and scarred. So the vil- 
 lagers named her little Scar Face. 
 
 Her father never knew how unkind her 
 elder sisters were. In the evening, when he 
 came home from his hunt, he would some- 
 times say to the little girl, "Why is it that 
 your face is always scarred and burned ? " 
 
 And before little Scar Face could answer 
 her eldest sister would say : " Father, it is 
 because she goes near the fire and falls in. 
 We tell her not to go there, but she will not 
 obey us." 
 
66 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 One day in winter, when the first snow lay 
 
 on the ground, the eldest sister said : " Little 
 
 Scar Face, bring me my shell beads and my 
 
 moccasins. I am going to marry Team!" 
 
 Little Scar Face brought the beads and the 
 
 moccasins and helped her sister put 
 
 them on. 
 
 In the evening, as the sun set, 
 the eldest sister went down by the 
 lake to Team's wigwam. The White 
 Maiden invited her to come inside. 
 
 By and by they heard footsteps. 
 Outside the wigwam there was a 
 sound as if some one was dragging 
 SHELL BEADS ^ gj^^g^ through the suow. The 
 
 White Maiden led little Scar Face's sister to 
 the door and said to her, " Can you see my 
 brother?" 
 
 " Yes, I can see him very well," she 
 answered. 
 
 " Then tell me, of what is his sledge string 
 made? " said the White Maiden. 
 
LITTLE SCAR FACE 67 
 
 And the other answered, " It is made of 
 moose skin." 
 
 This made the White Maiden angry. 
 
 " No, it is not made of moose skin ! You 
 have not seen my brother. You must go 
 away," she cried. And 
 she drove little Scar 
 Face's sister out of 
 the wigwam. 
 
 The next day little 
 Scar Face's second sis- 
 ter said to her : " Lit- 
 tle Scar Face, bring me 
 my shell beads and my 
 moccasins. I am going 
 to marry Team ! " 
 
 Little Scar Face brought the beads and the 
 moccasins and her sister put them on. 
 
 In the evening, then, as the sun was set- 
 ting, the second sister went down to Team's 
 wigwam. The White Maiden invited her to 
 come in. 
 
 MOOSE 
 
68 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 By and by she, too, heard footsteps. Then 
 the White Maiden said to her, " Can you see 
 my brother ? " 
 
 " Yes, I can see him very well," she answered. 
 " Of what is his sledge string made ? " asked 
 
 the White Maiden. 
 And the other 
 answered, "It is 
 made of deerskin." 
 At this the 
 White Maiden be- 
 came angry again. 
 "No, it is not 
 made of deerskin ! 
 You have not seen my brother. You, too, must 
 go away," she cried. And she drove the second 
 sister out of the wigwam. 
 
 The next morning, while her two sisters sat 
 and talked, little Scar Face worked very hard. 
 She scoured the kettle and carried out the 
 ashes and fetched a great pile of wood for 
 the fire. Then she said to her two sisters : 
 
 INDIAN SLEDGE, OR TOBOGGAN 
 
LITTLE SCAR FACE 
 
 69 
 
 " Elder sisters, lend me your shell beads and 
 your moccasins. I, too, should like to try to 
 marry Team." 
 
 But her sisters laughed and mocked at the 
 little girl. They would not lend her any moc- 
 casins. At last her 
 second sister gave 
 her some strings 
 of beads that were 
 very small. 
 
 In a corner of the 
 wigwam far from 
 the door little Scar 
 Face found a pair 
 of old moccasins 
 that her father had 
 thrown away. They were dry and hard and 
 were too big for her. She soaked them in 
 water to make them soft. 
 
 She had no pretty clothing to wear, but 
 she made herself a queer little dress out of 
 birch bark. 
 
 INDIAN WOOD PILE 
 
70 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 She looked very ugly with her scarred face 
 and short hair. As she went through the vil- 
 lage the dogs barked at her and the people 
 laughed and called out, 
 
 " Oho ! look at little Scar Face ! 
 Oho ! look at littleScar Face ! " 
 
 But when she came to Team's wigwam the 
 White Maiden spoke kindly to her. 
 
 " Come into the 
 wigwam, little Scar 
 Face," she said. 
 
 Little Scar Face 
 went in and sat 
 down. By and by 
 she heard footsteps. 
 Then the White 
 Maiden led her to 
 the door and said, 
 " Little Scar Face, can you see my brother ? " 
 
 " Yes, I can see him ; and I am afraid, for he 
 is wonderful," answered little Scar Face. 
 
 INDIAN DOG 
 
LITTLE SCAR FACE 71 
 
 " Then tell me, of what is his sledge string 
 made?" said the White Maiden. 
 
 " How wonderful ! His sledge string is the 
 rainbow," cried little Scar Face. 
 
 When Team heard th'is he smiled and said 
 to his sister, " Elder sister, bathe little Scar 
 Face's hair and eyes in the magic water." 
 
 And when she did so a wonderful thing 
 happened. All the scars and burns faded 
 away from the little girl's face. Her hair 
 came out long and black. Her eyes were like 
 two round stars. 
 
 The White Maiden then led her to the 
 wife's seat beside the door. 
 
 Thus little Scar Face saw Team, and he 
 had her for his wife. 
 
X 
 
 HOW THE LITTLE RABBIT SNARED 
 
 THE SUN 
 
 Once the little Rabbit and his grandmother 
 moved their tent to new hunting grounds. 
 Summer had gone and the trees in the wood- 
 land were turning yellow. It was time for 
 the little Rabbit to lay in meat for winter. 
 
 Each morning he awoke early, took his bow 
 and quiver, and went out to hunt. In the even- 
 ing he came back with meat and skins. His 
 grandmother dried the meat and made the 
 skins into robes for winter. 
 
 One evening the little Rabbit came home 
 walking very fast. He threw down a pack of 
 
 73 
 
HOW THE RABBIT SNARED THE SUN 73 
 
 skins before the door and went into the tent. 
 He was quite vexed. 
 
 " Grandmother," he cried, " each morning I 
 awake early and go to the woodland to hunt, 
 but some one is always there before me; and 
 he has a very long foot, — I can see his tracks 
 in the path." 
 
 " Grandson, you. must get up earlier," said 
 his grandmother. 
 
 The next morning the little Ra.bbit awoke 
 very early. He put on his moccasins, took his 
 bow and quiver, and went again to hunt; but 
 when he came to the woodland there were the 
 tracks in the path as before. 
 
 This greatly vexed the little Rabbit. He 
 could not think who it was that made the 
 tracks. In the evening, when he came home, 
 he said : " Grandmother, I awoke early, but 
 when I came to the path in the woodland some 
 one with a very long foot was before me." 
 
 " Grandson, you must get up earlier," said 
 his grandmother. 
 
74 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The next morning the little Rabbit was up 
 before it was day, but when he came to the 
 woodland there were the tracks in the path as 
 before. In the evening he said again to his 
 grandmother : " Grandmother, I arose very 
 
 early, but when I came 
 to the woodland some 
 one was there before 
 me ; and he has a very 
 long foot. I should like 
 to know who he is." 
 
 " Grandson, you must 
 get up still earlier," said 
 his grandmother. 
 " No, grandmother ; but I will make a snare 
 and catch him," said the little Rabbit. 
 
 His grandmother did not want him to do 
 this. She was afraid the little Rabbit might 
 get into trouble. 
 
 " O grandson, do not do that ! " she cried ; 
 "you may catch something terrible in your 
 snare." 
 
 RABBIT SNARE 
 
HOW THE. RABBIT SNARED THE SUN 75 
 
 But the little Rabbit was now angry. He 
 did not like to be beaten at anything. 
 
 "Grandmother, I hate him because he gets 
 ahead of me; and he has a very long foot. 
 I am going to catch him," he answered. 
 
 So the little Rabbit sat down in the tent 
 and made a snare out of his bowstring. He 
 then went to the woodland where he had seen 
 the tracks. He put the snare in the middle 
 of the path. 
 
 Early the next morning he went to the place 
 where the snare was set. As he drew near he 
 saw that the woodland was light like midday. 
 
 The little Rabbit wondered at this ; but 
 when he came in sight of the path he was 
 astonished. He found that he had caught 
 the Sun in his snare. 
 
 This frightened the little Rabbit. He turned 
 and ran home again as fast as he could run. 
 He found his grandmother bringing in some 
 wood for the fire. She had just raised the 
 door flap to go into the tent. 
 
76 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The little Rabbit stopped when he saw his 
 grandmother. His heart was beating and his 
 breath came very fast. 
 
 " O grandmother," he cried, " I have caught 
 something bright in my snare ! I am afraid to 
 
 go near it. It scares 
 me dreadfully." 
 
 His grandmother let 
 
 fall the load of wood 
 
 that was on her back. 
 
 She was more fright- 
 
 ^^; ened, even, than the 
 
 little Rabbit. 
 
 " O grandson," 
 she cried, "I told 
 you not to set the snare! 
 Now you have caught the 
 Sun. Go at once and cut 
 him loose. If you do not, 
 he will set fire to the world 
 and burn us up." And she drew her robe over 
 her face and wailed loudly. 
 
 INDIAN WOMAN BRINGING 
 IN WOOD 
 
HOW THE RABBIT SNARED THE SUN 77 
 
 " Grandmother, I want to cut the Sun loose, 
 for I should like to get my bowstring again ; 
 but every time I go near, the heat scares me," 
 answered the little Rabbit. 
 
 DRYING MEAT 
 
 But he took his knife and ran back to the 
 place where the Sun was caught. This time 
 he went nearer. When the Sun saw him he 
 cried out: "You very bad Rabbit, why did 
 
78 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 tlJE 
 
 i*^ 
 
 KNIFE WITH BEADED 
 SHEATH 
 
 you catch me? Come here at 
 once and loose me ! " 
 
 The little Rabbit tried hard 
 to be brave. He took his knife 
 in his hand and ran toward the 
 snare; but the heat was so 
 great that it made him afraid, 
 and he turned again to one 
 side. 
 
 All this time the Sun was 
 getting hotter and hotter. He 
 was terribly angry. 
 
 "You very bad Rabbit," he 
 cried, " if you do not loose me 
 I will set fire to the world and 
 burn you up ! " 
 
 The little Rabbit took his 
 knife in his hand once more. 
 He bent down his head and 
 ran toward the Sun with his 
 arm held straight out before 
 him. When he came near he 
 
HOW THE RABBIT SNARED THE SUN 79 
 
 cut the snare and the Sun leaped up into 
 the sky again. 
 
 But the Sun was very, very hot. When the 
 little Rabbit stooped to cut the snare, the fur 
 on his back was scorched all yellow with the 
 Sun's heat. 
 
 The little Rabbit put his knife back into its 
 sheath and went limping home. He was in 
 great pain. 
 
 " O grandmother," he cried, " my back hurts 
 me dreadfully ! The Sun has burned my skin 
 and scorched the fur on my back all yellow." 
 
 " Grandson," she answered, " I told you not 
 to set the snare. I knew the Sun was hot. 
 That is why I was afraid when he was caught ! " 
 But she took the little Rabbit into the tent and 
 spread a robe for him to lie upon. 
 
 Ever since that time the little Rabbit has 
 had yellow fur on his back where he was 
 scorched by the Sun's heat. 
 
XI 
 THE MAGIC WIGWAM 
 
 An Indian was walking in the forest when 
 he heard dancing a long way off. He stopped 
 and listened. It was in autumn, when the 
 ground is dry, and he could hear the feet of 
 the dancers beating the ground. 
 
 " That is strange," thought the Indian. 
 " Who can be dancing in the forest to-day ? " 
 
 He set off toward the sound, to see who the 
 dancers were; but he went for a whole week 
 before he saw any one. 
 
 He came at last to two queer old people — 
 
 an old man and an old woman — dancing 
 
 80 
 
THE MAGIC WIGWAM 
 
 around a tree. On a limb in the top of the 
 tree lay a fat raccoon. 
 
 The old people had danced until they had 
 worn a deep ditch around the tree. Every 
 time they danced 
 
 around they made ^ffl ^^V^^I^N^ 
 
 the ditch deeper. 
 
 The Indian was 
 much surprised to 
 see the two old 
 people. 
 
 "What are you 
 doing ? " he asked. 
 
 " We are danc- 
 ing the tree down. When the ditch is deep the 
 tree will fall. Then we will kill the big raccoon 
 and eat his meat," answered the old man. 
 
 The Indian laughed and drew a hatchet from 
 his belt. It was made of stone and had a sharp 
 edge. 
 
 " That is no way to fell a tree. Let me cut 
 it down for you," he said. 
 
 RACCOON 
 
82 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The old man agreed, and the Indian cut 
 down the tree with his hatchet. They killed 
 the raccoon, and the old woman tanned its 
 skin and gave it to the Indian. 
 
 " Grandson," she said, " take this raccoon skin. 
 It is no common pelt. It will bring you luck." 
 
 STONE HATCHET 
 
 The Indian thanked the two old people, 
 stuck the raccoon skin in his belt, and went 
 on his way. 
 
 He had not gone far when he saw some- 
 thing strange through the trees. A man was 
 coming up the path with a birch-bark wigwam 
 on his head. The wigwam was new, and its 
 bark sides shone white like snow. 
 
THE MAGIC WIGWAM 83 
 
 The Indian felt afraid at first. He thought 
 the man must be one of the magic people. 
 
 The stranger put the wigwam on the ground 
 and looked at the Indian. Then he spoke. 
 
 " That is a fine skin you have in your belt. 
 Where did you get it ? " 
 
 " Two queer old people gave it to me. They 
 said it would bring me luck," answered the 
 Indian. 
 
 When the stranger heard this he wanted 
 very much to own the raccoon skin. 
 
 " I should like to have you sell me the skin," 
 he said. 
 
 " What will you give me for it ? " asked the 
 Indian. 
 
 " I will give you this knife," answered the 
 stranger. 
 
 " No ; that is not enough," said the other. 
 
 " I will give you my bow and arrows," said 
 the stranger. 
 
 " No," said the Indian ; " that is still too 
 little." 
 
84 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 "Then I will give you this beautiful bark 
 wigwam," said the stranger. 
 
 The Indian looked at the wigwam. Through 
 the door he saw robes and mats and skins. 
 
 "It is a fine wigwam, but it is so large. 
 
 How shall I be 
 
 able to carry it ? " 
 he asked. 
 
 "That is easy," 
 answered the 
 stranger. " The 
 wigwam is light; 
 it is magic." 
 The Indian 
 lifted the wigwam to his head. Although so 
 large, it was light, like a basket. 
 
 " How wonderful ! the wigwam is not 
 heavy," he said. He then gave the raccoon 
 skin to the stranger and went on, with the 
 wigwam on his head. 
 
 In the afternoon he came to a place where 
 a spring of clear water came out of the ground. 
 
 WHITE OR ARCTIC BEAR 
 
THE MAGIC WIGWAM 85 
 
 " This is a fine place for a camp," he thought. 
 " I will pitch my wigwam here for the winter." 
 
 He set the wigwam on the ground and went 
 inside. The sun was setting and the air was 
 getting chilly. The Indian made a fire under 
 the smoke hole and sat down to warm himself. 
 
 He was tired, for he had walked a long way. 
 Near the fireplace lay a white bearskin. The 
 Indian drew it toward him and lay down upon 
 it. Soon he fell asleep. 
 
 When he awoke the warm sun was shining. 
 He opened his eyes and looked up. He was 
 surprised to see good things to 
 eat hanging from the roof poles. 
 
 There were deer hams and 
 packs of dried meat. Baskets 
 of dried berries and of maple 
 sugar hung there, and many 
 ears of corn. 
 
 This made the Indian glad, 
 for he had slept a long time and was hungry. 
 He reached out his arms and sprang upward, 
 
 INDIAN BASKET 
 
86 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 hoping to seize the baskets; but a wonderful 
 thing then happened. 
 
 His arms became wings. The white bear- 
 skin melted and ran away. The roof poles 
 
 became branches 
 of a birch tree. 
 The deer hams 
 and the baskets 
 of dried berries 
 were turned into 
 birch buds. 
 
 He was an In- 
 dian no longer, 
 — he was Pulo- 
 wech^ the Part- 
 ridge. He put out his wings and flew into 
 the birch tree, crying gladly, for spring had 
 come. 
 
 The white bearskin had been the winter's 
 snow. The wigwam was a snowdrift in which 
 the Partridge had hidden all winter long. 
 
 PARTRIDGE, OR RUFFED GROUSE 
 
 ^ Pii'lo-wech. 
 
XII 
 
 WHY THE BABY SAYS " GOO " 
 
 In a village near the mountains lived an 
 Indian chief. He was a brave man and had 
 fought in many battles. No one in the tribe 
 had slain more enemies than he. 
 
 Strange folk were then in the land. Fierce 
 ice giants came out of the North and carried 
 away women and children. Wicked witches 
 dwelt in caves, and in the mountains lived 
 the Mikumwess/ or magic little people. 
 
 But the chief feared none of them. He fought 
 the ice giants and made them go back to their 
 
 ^ MIk'um-w6ss. 
 87 
 
88 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 home in the North. Some of the witches he 
 killed ; others he drove from the land. 
 
 Everybody loved the chief. He was so 
 brave and good that the villagers thought 
 there was no one like him anywhere. 
 
 But when he had driven out all the giants 
 the chief grew vain. He began to think him- 
 self the greatest warrior in the world. 
 
 " I can conquer any one," he boasted. 
 
 Now it happened that a wise old woman 
 lived in the village. When she heard what 
 the great chief boasted, she smiled. 
 
 " Our chief is wonderful ; but there is one 
 who is mightier than he," she said. 
 
 The villagers told the chief what the wise 
 woman had said. He came and visited her in 
 her wigwam. 
 
 " Grandmother, who is this wonderful one?" 
 he asked. 
 
 "His name is Wasis,"^ answered the wise 
 woman. 
 
 1 Wa'sls. 
 
WHY THE BABY SAYS "GOO" 89 
 
 " And where is he, grandmother ? " asked 
 the chief. 
 
 "He is there," said the wise woman; and 
 she pointed to a place in the wigwam. 
 
 The chief looked,- — and who do you think 
 Wasis was? He was a plump little Indian 
 Baby. In the middle of the floor he sat, crow- 
 ing to himself and sucking a piece of maple 
 sugar. He looked very sweet and contented. 
 
 Now the chief had no wife, and knew noth- 
 ing about babies ; but he thought, like all vain 
 people, that he knew everything. He thought, 
 of course, that the little Baby would obey him ; 
 so he smiled and said to little Wasis : 
 
 " Baby, come to me ! " 
 
 But the Baby smiled back and went on 
 sucking his maple sugar. 
 
 The chief was surprised. The villagers al- 
 ways did whatever he bade them. He could not 
 understand why the little Baby did not obey him; 
 but he smiled and said again to little Wasis : 
 
 " Baby, come to me I " 
 
90 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The little Baby smiled back and sucked his 
 maple sugar as before. 
 
 The chief was astonished. No one had ever 
 dared disobey him before. He grew angry. 
 He frowned at little Wasis and roared out: 
 "BABY, COME TO ME!" 
 But little Wasis opened his mouth and 
 •■^f burst out crying and screaming. 
 The chief had never heard such 
 awful sounds. Even the ice giants 
 did not scream so terribly. 
 
 The chief was more and more 
 astonished. He could not think 
 why such a little Baby would not 
 obey him. 
 
 " Wonderful ! " he said. "All other 
 men fear me; but this little Baby 
 shouts back war cries. Perhaps I 
 can overcome him with my magic." 
 He took out his medicine bag 
 and shook it at the little Baby. He danced 
 magic dances. He sang wonderful songs. 
 
 MEDICINE BAG 
 
WHY THE BABY SAYS "GOO" 91 
 
 Little Wasis smiled and watched the chief 
 with big round eyes. He thought it all 
 very funny. And all the time he sucked his 
 maple sugar. 
 
 The chief danced un- 
 til he was tired out ; 
 sweat ran down his 
 face; red paint oozed 
 over his cheeks and 
 neck; the feathers in 
 his scalp lock had 
 fallen down. 
 
 At last he sat down. 
 He was too tired to 
 dance any longer. 
 
 " Did I not tell you that Wasis is mightier 
 than you ? " said the wise old woman. " No 
 one is mightier than the Baby. He always 
 rules the wigwam. Everybody loves him and 
 obeys him." 
 
 " It is even so," sighed the chief, as he went 
 out of the wigwam. 
 
 INDIAN WITH PAINTED FACE 
 
92 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 But as he went he could hear little Wasis 
 talking to himself on the floor. 
 
 " Goo, goo, goo ! " he crowed, as he sucked 
 his maple sugar. 
 
 Now, when you hear the Baby saying " Goo, 
 goo, goo," you will know what it means. It 
 is his war cry. He is happy because he 
 remembers the time when he frightened the 
 chief in the wigwam of the wise old woman. 
 
XIII 
 THE WREN 
 
 The little Wren with speckled coat, 
 
 And sweet and cheery cry, 
 Is the dearest bird in all the wood, 
 
 And I will tell you why. 
 
 When a baby comes to the Indian's hut 
 
 The Wren chirrups for joy. 
 And hops about on the edge of the roof 
 
 And sings, " Is it girl or boy ? " 
 
 Then to the wood he flies away 
 To call the birds together, — 
 
 Big birds, little birds, pretty and plain, 
 Birds all, of every feather. 
 
 93 
 
94 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 And if he chirrups, " It is a girl," 
 
 The birds sing, joyfully, 
 " We '11 eat the kernels of corn that fall 
 
 When she pounds hominy." 
 
 But if he chirrups, " It is a boy," 
 Loud mourns the feathered choir : 
 
 " Alas ! alas ! he will shoot us with arrows 
 And fry our shins in the fire ! " 
 
XIV 
 THE GOOD GIANTS 
 
 An Indian had his wigwam by the shore of 
 the sea. He was poor and he had many chil- 
 dren. Each day he took his canoe and went 
 out upon the sea to fish. His wife often went 
 with him to help him with the nets. 
 
 One day when they were fishing 
 a fog arose so that they lost their 
 way. They paddled in every direc- 
 tion, but they could not come to 
 land. 
 
 At last, when they were tired 
 and almost ready to give up, they heard voices 
 in the fog. They steered in the direction of 
 
 95 
 
 BONE FISH- 
 HOOKS 
 
96 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 the sound and came to a big canoe filled with 
 giants. The giants were young men and their 
 faces were dark like soot. They carried pad- 
 dles made out of whole trees. 
 
 The Indian and his wife were greatly fright- 
 ened when they saw the big canoe ; but the 
 giants burst out laughing at finding such 
 little folk. 
 
 " Ho, little people ! where are you going ? " 
 they asked. 
 
 " We do not know. We have lost our way," 
 answered the Indian. 
 
 The giants laughed harder than ever at this. 
 
 " Oho ! he says he has lost his way ! " they 
 roared. 
 
 At last they stopped laughing. 
 
 " Come with us, little people, and we will 
 take you home to our father," they said. 
 
 Two of the giants pushed the ends of their 
 paddles under the Indians' canoe. In this way 
 they lifted it, with the two Indians, into their 
 own. 
 
THE GOOD GIANTS 97 
 
 The giants then steered their canoe to the 
 shore. They did not seem to mind the fog. 
 They paddled straight ahead as if they could 
 see right througJi it. 
 
 On the shore stood three wigwams. They 
 were made of bark and were as tall as 
 mountains. 
 
 One of the giants lifted the two Indians in 
 his hand and carried them into the tallest wig- 
 wam. Their canoe he hung up on the roof 
 above the door. 
 
 Inside the wigwam was an old giant sitting 
 by the fire. He was much surprised when he 
 saw the two Indians. 
 
 "Ho, my son! what have you here?" he 
 asked. 
 
 " Father, they are two little people that we 
 found in a canoe. They have lost their way in 
 a fog," answered one of the young giants. 
 
 The old giant was greatly pleased with his 
 little guests. He called his wife to come and 
 see them. 
 
98 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 " But our little people must be hungry," he 
 said at last. " Let us get them something to 
 eat." 
 
 His wife brought a wooden bowl and went to 
 a great pot that hung over the fire. She took 
 out a whole whale, hot and steaming, and put 
 
 it into the bowl. 
 This she set 
 down before the 
 t^Q Indians. 
 
 " There, little people," she said, " now you 
 can eat." 
 
 The giants made a place in a corner of the 
 wigwam for the Indians to sleep. They 
 became very fond of their little guests and 
 were never tired of being kind to them. 
 
 One morning the old giant came into the 
 wigwam looking troubled. 
 
 " Little people," he said, " I have something 
 to tell you. In the North lives a terrible 
 Chenoo,^ or ice giant. He is our enemy. He 
 
 1 Che-noo'. 
 
THE GOOD GIANTS 99 
 
 hates us because we are kind to men. In 
 three days he will come to fight us. You 
 must take care that you do not hear his 
 scream. It is terrible. No one can hear it 
 and live." 
 
 He told the Indians to stop their ears and 
 wrap themselves in bearskins. In this way 
 they would not hear the ice giant's scream. 
 
 In three days the Chenoo came, just as the 
 old giant had said. There was a dreadful bat- 
 tle. Although their ears were stopped, the In- 
 dians could hear the ice giant's scream, faintly, 
 through the thick skins. It was terrible. 
 
 In a little while the Chenoo screamed a 
 second time. This time his voice did not 
 seem so dreadful. After the third time the 
 old giant came and unwrapped the bearskins. 
 
 " Now, little people, you may come out," he 
 said. "The Chenoo is dead. My son killed 
 him with a stone." 
 
 But the good giants had suffered too. Their 
 faces and hands were bruised and their legs 
 
lOO MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 were stuck full of pine trees, like thistles. 
 Indeed, when they came back to the wigwam 
 one of the young giants fell dead before the 
 door. 
 
 But this did not seem to trouble the old 
 giant. He only said, " My son, why are you 
 lying there ? " 
 
 " Father, it is because I am dead ; the Che- 
 noo has killed me," answered the dead giant. 
 
 " If that is all, get up at once ! " said the 
 old giant. 
 
 His son opened his eyes and sat up. He did 
 not seem a bit the worse for having been dead. 
 
 Months went by and summer had almost 
 gone. The Indian and his wife began to 
 think of their children far away in the wig- 
 wam by the sea. One day the old giant asked 
 them if they wished to go home. 
 
 " Yes, for we long to see our children," 
 answered the Indian. 
 
 The next morning the old giant took down 
 the Indians' canoe from its place on the roof 
 
THE GOOD GIANTS lOl 
 
 and put it on the sea. The giant's wife loaded 
 it with furs and packs of dried meat. The 
 canoe sank almost to the water. 
 
 When the Indian and his wife had got in, 
 the old giant gave them a little gray dog. He 
 told them to paddle in the direction the little 
 dog pointed. Then he said to the little dog, 
 " Take these people home to their wigwam." 
 
 The little dog ran to the middle of the 
 canoe and stood with his paws resting on the 
 edge. He barked and pointed with his nose 
 straight out to sea. 
 
 The Indians steered their canoe as the little 
 dog pointed. In a few hours they reached 
 their home. As they came to shore their 
 children ran out to meet them. 
 
 The little dog leaped out of the canoe, bjark- 
 ing and wagging his tail. He jumped about 
 upon the sand and rubbed his nose into the 
 children's faces. Then he trotted home again 
 over the ocean. He ran over the top of the 
 water just as if it were ice. 
 
I02 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 After this, whenever the Indian set his nets 
 they came up bursting with fish. If he went 
 hunting he always killed many deer. He grew 
 rich. No one in all the land had more meat 
 and skins than he. 
 
 Thus he knew that the good giants had not 
 forgotten him. 
 
XV 
 
 THE LITTLE FAWN 
 
 A Doe was grazing in an open place in a 
 thicket. With her was her httle Fawn who 
 was not yet old enough to eat grass. He 
 skipped about and played among the bushes 
 while his mother fed. At last he ran out to 
 the edge of a meadow that lay beyond. 
 
 The little Fawn raisdd his nose to sniff the 
 sweet air. The wind brought something 
 strange to his smell. Far off over the 
 meadow he saw some black things moving 
 in the grass. They were Indian hunters. 
 They were so far away that they looked like 
 little black specks in the meadow. 
 
 '03 
 
I04 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The little Fawn was frightened. He put 
 his tail in the air and ran back into the 
 thicket again. 
 
 " O mother," he cried ; " I see some black 
 things far off in the meadow. They are hid- 
 ing in the grass. I fear they are men ! " 
 
 His mother stopped eating for a moment 
 and raised her head. 
 
 " No, little son," she said ; " they are not men 
 that you see. They are crows. They are feed- 
 ing in the grass." 
 
 But the little Fawn could not rest. Again 
 he ran to the edge of the thicket and looked 
 out. There were the hunters hiding in the 
 grass as before. They were creeping nearer. 
 
 The little Fawn ran back to his mother 
 more, frightened than ever. His tail stood 
 straight up over his back as he ran. 
 
 " Mother," he cried ; " the black things are 
 nearer ! They are coming toward us ! They 
 are creeping through the grass ! I know they 
 are men I " 
 
THE LITTLE FAWN I05 
 
 His mother only smiled. " Little son, do 
 not be afraid," she said. " They are not men 
 that you see. They are crows." 
 
 Still the little Fawn could not rest. Once 
 more he ran to the edge of the thicket and 
 looked. This time the 
 hunters were quite near. 
 
 The little Fawn was 
 dreadfully frightened and 
 ran again to his mother 
 in the thicket. He ran so 
 fast that his tail bobbed up and down in the air. 
 
 " O mother," he cried ; " the black things are 
 not crows ! They are men ; they have bows 
 and arrows ; they are very near." 
 
 But his mother would not even look up 
 from her feeding. 
 
 " No, little son ; what you see are only some 
 crows," she said. 
 
 Just then the hunters rose up out of the 
 grass. They had arrows on their bowstrings, 
 ready to shoot. 
 
lo6 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The Doe whistled and leaped 
 away, but the hunters shot her 
 with their arrows. The little 
 Fawn escaped into the bushes. 
 In the evening the little Fawn 
 crept back to the edge of the 
 thicket. He looked out and 
 saw his mother lying on the 
 ground dead. The hunters had 
 made a fire and were cooking 
 the Doe's liver upon the coals. 
 This made the little Fawn 
 very sad. His head dropped 
 and bright tears stood in his 
 eyes. He turned and crept into 
 
 the thicket, weeping. He knew he should 
 
 never see his mother again. 
 
 INDIAN ARROWS 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN 
 
 In Salt village, long ago, were many rich 
 families who owned flocks of tame » Turkeys. 
 
 The Turkeys were kept in wooden cages at 
 night. In the day they had to be driven to 
 the field to feed. Poor people often did this 
 to earn a living. 
 
 At the farther end of the village, on the side 
 nearest the field, lived an Indian maiden. Her 
 house had but one room and was old and 
 ugly. Its sides were crumbling and the roof 
 leaked whenever it rained. 
 
 The little maiden was alone in the world. 
 
 Her father had died and she had no brothers 
 
 107 
 
io8 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 to care for her. Her blanket was ragged and 
 her moccasins were full of holes. Her face, 
 
 ZUNI HOUSES 
 
 too, was thin and pinched, for she was often 
 
 hungry. Only her eyes were soft and beautiful. 
 
 She would have starved if a rich family had 
 
 not let her care for their Turkeys. For this 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN 109 
 
 they gave her scraps of meal cake or a httle 
 meat. Sometimes they gave her a piece of 
 worn-out clothing to put on. 
 
 No one loved the little maiden, and she 
 was lonely and unhappy. But she was kind 
 to her Turkeys ; they were all the friends that 
 she had. 
 
 Now it happened that the villagers were 
 going to give a feast and dance. One morn- 
 ing, as the little maiden drove her Turkeys to 
 the field, a crier came out to name the feast 
 day. He stood on a house top and called 
 aloud: "Ho, you people of Salt village! In 
 four days will be the dance of the Sacred 
 Bird." 
 
 The little maiden sighed. She had wished 
 very much to go to the dance, but none could 
 go who had not beautiful clothes to wear. 
 
 The next three days everybody was busy in 
 Salt village. The men brought out rich blan- 
 kets and made their moccasins white with 
 powdered clay. The women combed their 
 
no 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 hair or baked heaps of fresh meal cakes for 
 .the feast. All were gay and happy. 
 
 On the fourth day was the dance. As the 
 little maiden drove her Turkeys to the field 
 she saw the villagers getting ready to go. 
 They were dressed in bright blankets and 
 had eagles' feathers in their hair. 
 
 The little maiden looked down at her own 
 ragged blanket. Tears came into her eyes. 
 " They will never let me go to the dance in 
 
 this ragged blanket," she 
 said. 
 
 But that morning a 
 strange thing happened. 
 When the little maiden 
 came to the field her 
 Turkeys did not seem to 
 want to feed. They stood 
 around, clucking and gob- 
 bling to one another as if they wanted to talk. 
 At last an old Gobbler came strutting up 
 to the little maiden. His big tail was spread 
 
 TURKEY GOBBLER 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN m 
 
 and his wings hung down and hid his legs 
 like a skirt. 
 
 " Maiden mother," he said, " we know you 
 want to go to the dance. Now we will help 
 you." 
 
 The little maiden was astonished, — she had 
 never heard Turkeys talk before; but the old 
 Gobbler went on : " Listen ! At noon we Tur- 
 keys will begin to cluck and. gobble. You 
 must then drive us back to the village. 
 When we come into our cage we will show 
 you what to do." ;.ii-«^ 
 
 The little maiden could not understand how 
 Turkeys could talk, but she promised to do 
 as the old Gobbler said. 
 
 At noon, sure enough, the Turkeys began 
 to cluck and gobble, and the little maiden 
 drove them to the village. When they came 
 to the wooden cage the old Gobbler made the 
 other Turkeys go inside. Last of all, he went 
 in and called to the little maiden, " Come into 
 our house ! " 
 
112 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The little maiden went into the cage and 
 sat down. All the Turkeys stood around her 
 in a circle. 
 
 "Give me your blanket," said the old Gobbler. 
 The little maiden took off her old ragged 
 
 blanket and laid 
 it on the floor. 
 
 The old Gob- 
 bler pulled it 
 with his beak 
 until it was flat 
 like a mat. He 
 spread his big 
 tail and dropped 
 
 WOODEN CAGE, OR PEN ^Is wlUgS agalu 
 
 like a skirt. Then he began to dance back 
 and forth over the blanket. 
 
 In a little while he stopped dancing and 
 picked the blanket up in his beak. He swelled 
 out his breast, put back his head, and puffed. 
 When he laid the blanket down again it was 
 a beautiful white mantle. 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN 113 
 
 Another old Turkey now stepped out of the 
 circle, and the little maiden gave him another 
 piece of her clothing. When he had danced 
 and puffed, it, also, was clean and beautiful. 
 And so, piece by piece, all the little maiden's 
 clothing was made clean and bright. 
 
 Then all the Turkeys spread their tails and 
 began to dance around the little maiden. 
 
 " Do not move ! You must sit while we 
 dance," they cried. 
 
 They clucked and gobbled and flirted their 
 tails as they danced. Whenever they passed 
 close to the little maiden they brushed her 
 with their wings. 
 
 When the dance was ended the little maiden's 
 face was round and beautiful ; her cheeks were 
 plump ; her hair was now soft and wavy. 
 
 But the old Gobbler had not finished. He 
 stepped out of the circle again and stood 
 before the little maiden. 
 
 " Maiden mother, you have no necklace. 
 Perhaps I can find you one," he said. 
 
114 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 He spread his tail and wings and began to 
 dance. Then he put back his head and 
 coughed. In a moment a fine shell necklace 
 came up into his mouth. 
 
 Another Turkey danced and coughed and 
 two blue earrings came into his mouth ; he 
 
 dropped them at the 
 little maiden's feet. 
 
 Then the old Gob- 
 bler spoke once more. 
 " Maiden mother, now 
 you are beautiful and 
 have rich clothing ; but 
 sometimes people be- 
 come proud and for- 
 get those who helped 
 them. Do not forget us. Come back to us 
 before the sun sets. Leave the cage door 
 open as you go." 
 
 The little maiden placed the necklace about 
 her neck and put the earrings in her ears. 
 She thanked the Turkeys many times. 
 
 ZUNI GIRL WITH NECKLACE 
 AND EARRINGS 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN 115 
 
 As she went out she left the cage door 
 open. The Turkeys called after her through 
 the door : " Maiden mother, remember ! Do 
 not forget us." 
 
 " Dear Turkeys, I will remember," she 
 answered. 
 
 Then, as she hurried away, they called 
 again : " Maiden mother, remember ! Come 
 back to us before the sun sets." 
 
 " Dear Turkeys, I will remember," she 
 answered. 
 
 When the little maiden came to the place 
 of the dance no one thought she was the poor 
 Turkey maiden. Her mantle was the richest 
 and whitest at the dance. 
 
 All the young men smiled when they looked 
 at her. They thought her the most beautiful 
 maiden they had ever seen. 
 
 " Who can she be ? " they asked. 
 
 The old men invited her to come into the 
 dance, and all joined hands in a great circle. 
 All the young men wanted to be next to her 
 
Il6 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 and hold the little maiden's hand. She was 
 very happy. 
 
 When the dance was ended the old men 
 called for another. Thus the afternoon went 
 by. The little maiden had never had such 
 a happy time. She forgot all about her 
 Turkeys. 
 
 At last the dancing was nearly over. As 
 they joined hands for the last time the little 
 maiden looked up. The sun was just setting 
 in the West. 
 
 Then the little maiden thought of her 
 Turkeys. 
 
 " O my dear Turkeys, I have forgotten 
 you ! " she cried. 
 
 She sprang out of the dance and ran back 
 toward the village. The old men called to her, 
 but she would not stop. 
 
 In the West the Sun had set behind the 
 mountains. It was growing dark. 
 
 Swiftly the little maiden ran to the wooden 
 cage. It was empty. 
 
THE TURKEY MAIDEN n; 
 
 Down the path she turned to the big field. 
 Far off she could hear the Turkeys running 
 over the hard ground. She listened. The 
 Turkeys were singing: 
 
 " Maiden mother, 
 Maiden mother, 
 
 You forgot us ! 
 Maiden mother. 
 Maiden mother. 
 
 Now we leave you ! " 
 
 " Dear Turkeys, come back to me ! " cried 
 the little maiden. 
 
 She ran and ran ; but the Turkeys spread 
 their wings and flew away toward the 
 mountains. 
 
 The little maiden looked down at her white 
 mantle. It was soiled and ragged, and its 
 border was torn. As she ran she had cut 
 her moccasins on the sharp stones. Now 
 they were full of holes. 
 
 Her shell necklace had broken and fallen 
 from her neck. She had lost her earrings. 
 
Il8 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The little maiden hid her face in her hands. 
 Hot tears rolled down her cheeks. Sobbing, 
 she turned to go back to the village. 
 
 As she went she could hear the Turkeys 
 singing far away: 
 
 " Maiden mother, 
 Maiden mother, 
 
 You forgot us! 
 Maiden mother. 
 Maiden mother, 
 
 Now we leave you ! " 
 
XVII 
 THE FLYING HEAD 
 
 This is the tale of the Flying Head 
 
 Which makes the red man shudder with 
 
 dread ^. 
 
 When the storm wind screams on a wintry 
 
 night 
 And he tells this tale by the lodge-fire light. 
 
 The Flying Head was a fearful thing 
 
 That flew on the blasts which the tempests 
 
 bring 
 When the roaring hurricane tears the trees 
 And lashes the ocean and beats the seas. 
 
 119 
 
I20 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The Flying Head had flaming eyes, 
 Round and staring, of hideous size; 
 And great white teeth that bit the air. 
 And round red mouth as big as a bear. 
 
 His feet were two great hairy paws ; 
 And hair hung down from his bony jaws; 
 And when in the tempest he rode the air, 
 His wings were his long black locks of hair. 
 
 One night, in her wigwam, on her mat, 
 A lonely Indian widow sat. 
 And heard the storm roar high and higher, 
 While she baked chestnuts by the fire. 
 
 As over the coals for the nuts she bent, 
 The Flying Head peeped into her tent 
 And thought that the fire coals, glowing hot. 
 Were the new-baked chestnuts that she sought. 
 
 " Hu, hu ! " he growled, " I am hungry, too ; 
 I have tasted nothing the whole night through; 
 
 But these red things in a heap that lie, 
 
 If the woman can eat them, why not I ? " 
 
THE FLYING HEAD 121 
 
 Then into the wigwam he came with a leap, 
 And opened his mouth to the red fire heap, 
 And, ere the woman could start or call. 
 He had swallowed the fire heap, coals and all. 
 
 But the red coals hot in his body lay 
 And boiled and sizzled and burned away, 
 Till the Flying Head with a roar of pain 
 Leaped out into the night again. 
 
 But what became of the Flying Head 
 When out of the widow's tent door he fled 
 Was never known to the Indian men, 
 For none of them ever saw him again. 
 
XVIII 
 
 OLD WINTER MAN AND THE SPRING 
 MAIDEN 
 
 On the edge of a forest stood a birch-bark 
 wigwam. Its roof curved over like the back 
 of a bow. 
 
 In a fireplace on the floor some coals were 
 burning. A little smoke went up through the 
 smoke hole in the roof. 
 
 An old man sat by the fire. He had a mat 
 under him and a wolf-skin robe over his shoul- 
 ders. On the floor near by lay a small heap 
 of dry sticks. 
 
OLD WINTER MAN AND SPRING MAIDEN 123 
 
 He was a queer looking old man. His hair 
 was white like frost. His face was wrinkled 
 and he had a round hump on his back. 
 
 The old man took a stick from the heap 
 and put it on the fire. Soon there was a 
 
 BARK WIGWAM WITH CURVED ROOF 
 
 blaze. The light made the old man's face 
 look yellow. The black smoke made shadows 
 on the roof overhead. 
 
 In the forest outside the winter wind was 
 blowing. 
 
124 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Hu-u-u-u-u ! it roared through the trees. 
 
 The old man put another stick on the fire. 
 Evening was near and it was growing dark. 
 The wind still blew outside. The wigwam 
 shook and rattled in the storm. 
 
 All night the old man sat by the fire. He 
 drew his mat close to the fireplace, for he 
 was cold. The wind came down the smoke 
 hole and blew ashes into his face. Before 
 morning he had put his last stick on the fire. 
 
 "It is my last stick ; when it is burned the 
 fire will die," he said. 
 
 He rested his head on his arm and shut his 
 eyes. He was very tired. His white hair fell 
 down and hid his face. In the ashes the fire 
 was dying. 
 
 Outside in the forest the wind still blew. 
 
 Hu-u-u-u-u ! it roared through the trees. 
 
 Suddenly the old man raised his head. 
 
 " I thought I heard footsteps," he said. 
 
 He put his hand to his ear and listened. 
 Again he heard the footsteps faintly in the 
 
OLD WINTER MAN AND SPRING MAIDEN 125 
 
 storm. Tread, tread, they went around the 
 wigwam. 
 
 A bearskin curtain hung over the door. As 
 the old man listened some one pushed the 
 curtain aside. The old man looked up. A 
 maiden stood in the doorway. 
 
 She was a beautiful maiden. Her cheeks 
 were painted red and her long black hair fell 
 almost to her feet. 
 
 Flowers covered her head. Her robe was 
 made of sweet grasses and her moccasins of 
 lily leaves sewed together. 
 
 The maiden stood in the doorway and 
 smiled. The morning sun peeped over the 
 hills and a little sunlight came in through 
 the door. The wind did not blow so hard now. 
 
 The old man frowned, for he did not like the 
 sunlight; but he spoke to the maiden and 
 asked her to come in. 
 
 " Come and tell me who you are," he said. 
 " I am old Winter Man. I bring the snow 
 and cold." 
 
1-26 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The maiden smiled and came into the 
 wigwam. 
 
 " I am the Spring Maiden. I bring the 
 
 warm winds and the sweet flowers," she said. 
 
 The old man looked at her and frowned. 
 
 He did not like the warm winds and the 
 
 flowers. 
 
 " You must go away," he said. " If you do 
 not, I shall frighten you with my cold." 
 
 He filled the 
 earthen bowl of his 
 pipe and lighted it 
 with a coal. He 
 
 EARTHEN PIPE ^^^^^ J-^^J^ ^J^^^^ 
 
 of smoke from his nostrils. Then he spoke: 
 " When I blow my breath the white frost falls. 
 The lakes and rivers are covered with ice." 
 
 The maiden smiled. 
 
 " When I breathe, the air grows warm," she 
 said. " The ice melts on the lakes and rivers." 
 
 The warm sunlight poured through the door 
 and fell on the old man's face. He frowned 
 
OLD WINTER MAN AND SPRING MAIDEN 127 
 
 and spoke again : " When I shake my white 
 hair the air is filled with snow. Soon the 
 earth is covered with snow. Everything is 
 covered with snow." 
 
 The maiden smiled and answered : " When 
 I shake my hair the warm rain falls. Soon 
 the snow is melted and the earth is green 
 again." 
 
 The old man's hand trembled as he put the 
 pipe from his lips. The robe had slipped from 
 his shoulders and he looked at the maiden 
 with frightened eyes ; but he spoke once more : 
 "When I walk in the forest, cold winds blow. 
 Leaves fall from the trees, and the grasses die, 
 for winter comes." 
 
 The maiden smiled again and answered : 
 "When I walk in the forest the warm sun 
 shines. The trees put out leaves, and flowers 
 spring up, for spring is here." 
 
 As she spoke she stepped to the old man's 
 side and touched him. Then a wonderful thing 
 happened. 
 
128 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 The old man's head nodded. His eyes closed, 
 and he fell upon the floor. He began to grow 
 smaller. 
 
 Water ran out of his mouth ; his white hair 
 melted and ran away. His robe turned into 
 a heap of vines. The wigwam roof fell in. 
 
 The maiden went out into the fields and 
 forests. Warm winds blew. The trees put 
 out leaves. Wherever the maiden stepped 
 flowers sprung up. 
 
 And each year at springtime the trees put 
 out leaves. Flowers still spring up in the 
 fields where the maiden stepped. 
 
■ <^ ■ --^ 
 
 CHILDREN S 
 SUPPLEMENT 
 
 129 
 
A YOUNG AMERICAN 
 
 130 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 
 
 STONE AX 
 
 Axes and hammers were made of stone and were 
 pecked into shape with a hard quartz pebble. Fig. i is 
 an ax ; Fig. 2 is a hammer. They may 
 be shaped from modehng clay or from fm:n^ 
 blocks of soft pine. 
 
 To haft them, take a tough green Fig. i Fig. 2 
 stick (Fig. 3) ; shave the end A thin and flat ; draw the 
 
 A ^=-=-^ ^^^,^,^ =__ g— ;:t=:-_^^ flat portion around 
 
 Fig. 3 the groove of the 
 
 ax (Fig. 4); bind neatly, as in Fig. 5. 
 
 The Indians often sewed a piece of wet raw- 
 hide over the handle. When the rawhide dried it 
 
 contracted and made the handle firm. This, however, 
 is not essential. 
 
 '3' 
 
132 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Fig. 6 
 
 THE DAKOTA TENT, OR TEPEE ^ 
 
 Wigwam is an Algonkin word meaning "lodge," 
 
 or "dwelling." Among the Algonkin tribes this was 
 usually a cabin-like structure of poles 
 and bark, or a dome-shaped tent of 
 the same material. The name is now 
 commonly applied to any of the tent- 
 or cabin-like lodges of our Indians. 
 
 Many kinds of lodges were in use 
 in the different tribes. The Dakota 
 
 movable tent, or tepee, is the 
 
 best known form. A small 
 
 model is easily made. 
 
 Take a dozen willow sticks, 
 
 or other wood, twelve inches 
 
 in length and the thickness 
 
 of a small lead pencil. With 
 
 a longer willow make a 
 
 hoop ten inches in diameter 
 
 (Fig. 6). 
 
 Lay the hoop upon a table. 
 
 Tie ten of the willow sticks 
 
 to the hoop at regular intervals, 
 
 tent poles. _ 
 
 ^ Te'-pee. 
 
 Fig. 7 
 
 These will form the 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 133 
 
 Draw the tops together and tie them two inches 
 from the ends at A (Fig. 7). This will make the 
 frame of the tent. 
 
 For the tent cover cut a semicircular piece from 
 a strip of white muslin, as in Fig. 8. The diameters 
 AB, AD, and AC should measure ten inches each. 
 
 B U 
 
 X D 
 
 Fig. 8 
 
 Cut out two triangular pieces, AFE and ARC. AE 
 and AG are each an inch long. EF, AF, AR, and GR 
 measure each two inches. 
 
 With a pair of scissors make the cuts P Y and QZ. 
 Each should be a half inch in length. 
 
 The pieces HLMJ and lONK are for smoke flaps, 
 ^should measure five inches; LM, four inches; HL, 
 two inches; and MJ, one inch. The same measure- 
 ments apply to lONK. 
 
134 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 In the corners of the smoke flaps, H and /, sew two 
 small, three-cornered pieces for pockets. 
 
 Sew the smoke flaps to the tent cover so that ML is 
 fitted to PE, and NO to QG. 
 
 Cut out two half-circular pieces 5 and T. The 
 diameters UV and WX should measure two and a half 
 inches each. BU and DX should be one inch each. 
 
 Fig. 9 
 
 Above and below the door, between P and B, and 
 Q and D, make a double row of holes near the edge of 
 the cover. These are the lacing holes. 
 
 Around the circular edge sew ten small loops of 
 cord or small twine. In the triangular piece APR sew 
 a small cord de. The tent cover will now appear as 
 in Fig. 9. 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 
 
 135 
 
 =se:;:s=: 
 Fig. 10 
 
 To put the cover on the frame, tie the three-cornered 
 piece A (Fig. 9), with the cord de, to one 
 of the willow poles at A (Fig. 7). 
 
 Draw the edges d and b' and c and c' 
 (Fig. 9) together, and lace with wooden pins. Cut 
 
 these from twigs or 
 match stems, one 
 inch in length, as in 
 Fig. 10. 
 
 Tie the cover to 
 the hoop through the 
 loops sewed to the 
 lower edge. 
 
 Two of the wil- 
 ;. low sticks remain 
 unused. Thrust the 
 fore ends into the 
 pockets of the smoke flaps and fasten behind to 
 the hoop. These keep the smoke flaps 
 in place. The tent now appears as in 
 Fig. II. 
 
 For door flap, bend a small willow 
 rod or a wire in the shape of a horse- 
 shoe (Fig. 12). Cover with a bit of 
 muslin sewed or glued over the rod. 
 
 Fig. 1 1 
 
 Fig. 12 
 
 Hang by a 
 
136 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 string to the lacing pin just over the door, as in 
 
 Fig. 13. 
 
 A tent for camp use may be made by increasing 
 the measurements to feet instead of inches. 
 
 The base hoop will not then be needed, as the tent 
 poles are thrust into the ground. The loops on the 
 
 tent cover are made fast 
 ■. \ to the ground with wooden 
 •- A pins. 
 \ V The tent poles of many 
 
 J ^ Dakota lodges measure 
 
 ^"^- '3 thirty feet in length. 
 
 In old times there was a prescribed way in which a 
 tepee should be set up. It was symbolic of the powers 
 that surround man, — a kind of little acted prayer 
 that the new-made home be kept from harm. 
 
 INDIAN DRESS 
 
 The Indian dress was of buckskin. It consisted of 
 leggings, shirt, belt, and clout. The last two may be 
 omitted. 
 
 The dress is easily imitated in yellow ca:mbric. Cut 
 shirt and leggings to fit the child. 
 
 By folding the cloth, the leggings (Fig. 14) may be 
 made with a single seam, AB. The outer edges are 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 
 
 137 
 
 fringed. Let the cloth project two inches beyond the 
 seam. Cut the fringe with 
 a pair of scissors, as shown 
 in the illustration. 
 
 The shirt, or coat (Fig. 
 15), is a simple garment. It 
 opens from the neck over 
 the shoulders. It is fringed 
 at the sides and under the 
 arms. 
 
 Draw the leggings and ^^' '■* 
 
 shirt over the boy's other clothing. Fasten to the lat- 
 ter with safety 
 pins. 
 
 The Indian 
 way was to 
 lace the shirt at the shoul- 
 ders and fasten the legging 
 to the belt with a thong, a' 
 (Fig. 14). 
 
 A bright-colored blanket 
 will do for a girl's costume. 
 It should be thrown over 
 the shoulders and fastened about the waist with 
 a belt. 
 
 Fig. 15 
 
138 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 When full costume is used the face may be painted. 
 Rub the skin well with vaseline and use Venetian 
 red. The whole face is painted for boys, but only 
 the cheeks for girls. 
 
 Indians did not paint the face or body for mere 
 ornament, or for fun. Each color had a meaning 
 and had to do with religious thoughts. 
 
 Fig. 1 6 
 
 CLAY POT 
 
 The Indian cooking pot was shaped like Fig. i6. It 
 was made of well-worked clay, mixed with 
 a little sand to avoid cracking in drying. 
 
 The children can mold 
 a pot in modeling clay 
 or in ordinary yellow 
 clay. The Indians rolled a lump 
 of the wet clay in the palms until 
 they had a slender rod or pencil. 
 They worked this into the grow- ^'^- '7 
 
 ing pot by coiling it around the edge (Fig. 17). 
 
 If common clay is used the pot may be dried and 
 then burned for an hour in a wood fire. 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 139 
 
 BOW AND ARROW 
 
 Fig. 18 represents an Indian bow. It may be made 
 of ash or hickory, and should be a little more than 
 half the height of the child. 
 
 The arrow is half the length of the bow, or 
 shorter. For a child's arrow the Indians shaved 
 down a sapling, leaving one end blunt, as in 
 Fig. 19. This was less dangerous than arrows 
 pointed with flint. 
 
 An arrow is useless unless feathered. Trim 
 two turkey feathers, as in Fig. 20, two inches 
 in length. Bind neatly to the 
 shaft of the arrow, as in Figs. 19 Fig. 18 
 and 20. This method is simpler than 
 that of using three feathers glued to 
 the shaft. 
 
 The nock A (Fig. 20) is to receive the 
 string. A little silk bound around the 
 iG. 19 . 20 gj^^£^ q£ ^j^g arrow just below the nock 
 
 will prevent the arrow from splitting. 
 
 Bows and arrows should be used by children with 
 great care. 
 
I40 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 MOCCASINS 
 
 There are different forms of the moccasin, or In- 
 dian shoe. That of the prairie tribes has three parts, 
 — sole, upper, and tongue. The sole is 
 of thick rawhide ; the tongue and upper 
 are of buckskin. 
 
 For indoor wear, use white canvas for 
 the tongue and upper. The sole may be 
 cut from a piece of very thick felt. 
 
 It is best to begin by cutting out a 
 pattern. 
 
 Let the child place his right foot, with 
 the shoe removed, upon a piece of cardboard. Draw 
 outline with a pencil and cut out with 
 a pair of scissors, as in Fig. 21. 
 
 From another piece of cardboard cut 
 out Fig. 22 for the upper. The sole and 
 upper cut by these patterns will be for 
 the right foot. For the left, turn the 
 patterns over. 
 
 For a child seven years of age the 
 length of the sole, AB (Fig. 21), should 
 be eight inches ; width, CD, three and a 
 half inches ; width of heel, £F, two and a half inches. 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 141 
 
 The upper (Fig. 22) should measure nine inches at 
 GH\ width, IJ, four and a half inches. 
 
 Make the cuts KL and MH with a pair of scissors. 
 The first should be halfway between the 
 toe and heel and should be three inches 
 in length. 
 
 In the corners iVand O pierce two holes. Fig. 23 
 In these put a small leather string for lacing. 
 
 Sew the upper on the sole, beginning at the toe- 
 The heel is made by sewing HP and HQ together. If 
 the moccasin is turned wrong side out before sewing, 
 the seams will be neater. 
 
 Cut out the tongue (Fig. 23) from a piece of canvas, 
 three and a half inches long and three inches at the 
 base RS. Sew to the upper so 
 that RS shall join KL. 
 
 The completed moccasin is shown 
 in Fig. 24. 
 
 The Indians embroider their 
 moccasins with beautiful beadwork 
 or with stained quills of the porcu- 
 pine. A pretty effect, not unlike 
 embroidery, may be given by using 
 thick velvet instead of canvas for the uppers. Blue, 
 red, and yellow are the favorite colors. 
 
 Fig. 24 
 
142 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 V~j When canvas is used, beadwork may be 
 
 iZ Y~-^ imitated by cutting out designs in bright- 
 
 1—-^ colored cloth and sewing or even gluing to 
 
 Fig. 25 .1 
 
 ^ the uppers. 
 
 Fig. 25 is a common Dakota design. It represents 
 
 the four cardinal points. 
 
 TRAVOIS 
 
 Before white men came, the Indians had no domestic 
 beasts except dogs. These were trained to drag a kind 
 of vehicle called a "travois." On this were packed 
 the household goods whenever camp was moved. 
 
 The travois is made with collar and thong, two light 
 poles, a basket, and a pad. The collar and thong are 
 of' rawhide (.^, B, Fig. 26). The two poles are lashed at 
 thei sttlaller end, and the joint is covered with a pad 
 of '^dft leather, C, stuffed with hair. The basket £> is 
 a willow hooff" With a simple netting. 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 143 
 
 To harness the travois, the lashed ends of the poles 
 are slipped into the noose of the thong B (Fig. 26), and 
 the noose drawn taut. The tjiong is whipped twice 
 or thrice around one of the poles and tied. It is then 
 passed under the dog's body and tied again to the 
 
 Fig. 27 
 
 opposite pole, thus forming a girth. The harnessed 
 dog is shown in Fig. 27. 
 
 If better materials are wanting the collar may be 
 made of felt or of thick canvas. A twine or a leather 
 shoestring will do for a thong, and willow sticks for 
 poles. The latter should be two and a half times the 
 length of the dog's body, measuring from the nose to 
 the root of the tail. 
 
 Children will be interested to know that the travois 
 basket often held a dark-eyed Indian baby. 
 
144 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Fig. 28 
 
 WAR BONNET 
 
 The war bonnet, or ceremonial headdress, was made 
 with eagles' feathers. These were fastened in a circle 
 to a cap of buffalo skin. 
 
 A good imitation of a native war 
 bonnet can easily be made. 
 Take an old hat of soft felt, 
 cut off the brim, and remove the band (Fig. 28). 
 Get a dozen or more tail feathers of a turkey, 
 — those of a white turkey are prettiest. 
 
 Cut the shaft of each feather to a point, as in 
 Fig. 29. With a small knife pierce two open- 
 ings in the crown, just above the rim. Thrust 
 the point of the quill A (Fig. 29) through the open- 
 ings, as in Fig. 30, and double the point back into the 
 
 Fig. 30 Fig. 31 Fig. 32 
 
 hollow shaft, as in Fig. 31. This secures the feather 
 to the felt crown. 
 
 Sew or tie a bit of red flannel around the base of 
 the quill, as in Fig. 32. 
 
THINGS FOR CHILDREN TO MAKE 
 
 145 
 
 Continue this process until the felt crown is sur- 
 rounded with a circlet of feathers (Fig. 33). Fix 
 
 these in place with a ^, ■"■'Vfl'''?. .,'""''//»,..■ ••/ >,..,.. 
 
 thread B, drawn through ||)|1|%|[#^ 
 
 the -shafts of the feathers ^||fe|j/f ]4l;C^7fJ/---» 
 
 with a needie. 
 
 QUIVER 
 
 The simplest form of 
 quiver is shown in Fig. 34. 
 Cut from canvas to fit size ^"^- 33 
 
 of arrows. It should rest on the right shoulder, held 
 in place by a thong or belt. The latter should pass 
 over the right shoulder and under the left arm. 
 
 THE PIPE 
 
 The Indians carved beautiful pipes 
 from soapstone or red pipestone. 
 
 Fig. 35 shows the common form. 
 The stem (Fig. 36) is a piece of ash 
 sapling from which the pith has been 
 removed. 
 
 Fig. 34 
 
 Fig. 35 
 
 Fig. 36 
 
146 
 
 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 A pipe may be molded in modeling clay. A pine 
 stick, cut like Fig. 36, will do for a stem. 
 
 The bowl may be made six inches in length, and 
 the stem ten inches. 
 
 When smoking, the Indians sat on the ground, as 
 in Fig. 37. In council they usually sat in a circle, 
 and the pipe was passed from mouth to mouth. 
 
 Fig. 37 
 
EXPLANATORY NOTES 
 
 I. LITTLE UGLY BOY 
 Tribe, Zufii ; home, western New Mexico 
 
 Zuni houses are built of stone and are entered 
 through a trapdoor in the roof. A ladder reaches 
 from the roof to the ground. In times of danger 
 the ladder is drawn up, making the house into a 
 kind of fort. 
 
 As the houses are built in a solid block, the flat 
 roofs serve for a court. It was quite natural for little 
 Ugly Boy to address the villagers from his grand- 
 mother's roof. 
 
 II. WHY TURKEYS HAVE RED EYES 
 Tribe, Oto ; home, southeastern Nebraska 
 
 This is, to an Indian, a highly mo;'al tale. The 
 unbecoming curiosity of the Turkeys and of the old 
 Rabbit grandmother is properly punished. 
 
 Indians recorded important events by a rude kind 
 of picture writing. Songs were often written in these 
 picture symbols. Such, perhaps, are what the little 
 Rabbit claimed to have in his robe. 
 
 147 
 
148 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 Indian picture writing is described in Section XIV 
 of Longfellow's Hiawatha. 
 
 III. THE SUN MAN AND THE MOON 
 Tribe, Omaha ; home, eastern and central Nebraska 
 
 This is a quaint bit of Indian humor. Explain how 
 the face, or part of the Moon that is light, is always 
 turned toward the Sun. Perhaps it is because the 
 Moon is watching the Sun as she follows him through 
 the sky. 
 
 The Omahas and some other tribes built houses of 
 split logs covered with clay. Such lodges were roomy 
 and a good shelter against cold. Our western sod 
 houses are thought by some to be modeled after these 
 earth lodges. 
 
 IV. WUCHOWSON THE WIND BLOWER 
 Tribe, Passamaquoddy ; home, about Passamaquoddy Bay, Maine 
 
 The pemmican which the Indian took as he started 
 North was for food on the way. It was made of dried 
 meat pounded fine and mixed with boiling fat. This 
 was poured while hot into skin bags. A handful of 
 pemmican lasted a traveler for a day. 
 
EXPLANATORY NOTES 149 
 
 V. THE LITTLE ICE MAN 
 
 Tribe, Cherokee ; home, mountainous region of Tennessee, 
 Georgia, and Alabama 
 
 It will be noted that the chief addresses the old 
 man in the council house as grandfather. This is a 
 term of respect, — a common use of Indian kinship 
 names. Generally our Indians had much respect for 
 the aged. 
 
 Indians provided themselves with new moccasins 
 before starting on a journey. Sometimes they even 
 took extra pairs along. 
 
 The place of honor in a wigwam is that farthest 
 from the door, on the opposite side of the fire. A 
 seat here in winter time is warmest, and gives a 
 ready view of any one entering the door. 
 
 VI. GLOOSKAP AND THE WINTER GIANT 
 
 Tribe, Micmac ; home. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and islands of 
 the Gulf of St. Lawrence 
 
 When a deer was brought home it was left on the 
 ground outside the wigwam. The women then went 
 out and dressed the carcass. 
 
 It was proper for the Indian host to hand a lighted 
 pipe to his guests. When they had smoked with him, 
 he was bound by the same ties that bind an Arab to 
 one who has eaten his salt. For the Winter Giant to 
 
150 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 harm one who had smoked his pipe was a violation 
 of sacred hospitaUty. 
 
 The time for story-telling was the long winter even- 
 ings. It was therefore fitting that the Winter Giant 
 should entertain Glooskap with wonderful tales. 
 
 VII. THE FISHER WHO LET OUT SUMMER 
 Tribe, Chippewa ; home, regions about Lalse Superior 
 
 The Fisher is a fur-bearing animal of the weasel 
 family. It is about the size of a cat. 
 
 It is said that the Chippewas have never made pot- 
 tery. They carved bowls from wood or made them of 
 birch bark. The household utensils of a wigwam are 
 not numerous. For this reason it is still the custom 
 among the Chippewas for each guest to bring his 
 own eating bowl when invited to a feast. 
 
 For the Otter to laugh at the awkwardness of his 
 host was in the highest degree discourteous. Hence 
 the ill luck that pursued him. 
 
 The Fisher lying among the stars is the constellation 
 of Charles's Wain, or the Big Dipper. 
 
 VIII. THE RAINBOW SNAKE 
 Tribe, Shoshoni ; home, western Wyoming and neighboring regions 
 
 "No longer the rose pods grow." The Shoshonis 
 did not plant corn. The seed pods of the wild rose 
 were boiled and eaten by many of our western tribes. 
 
EXPLANATORY NOTES 
 
 IX. LITTLE SCAR FACE 
 
 151 
 
 Tribe, Micmac ; home, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and islands of 
 the Gulf of St. Lawrence 
 
 Every Indian village had its council house, which 
 served much the same purpose as a New England 
 townhall. 
 
 The sledge is the familiar toboggan. It was made of 
 strips of wood lashed together with thongs. 
 
 Mr. Leland believes this to be an old solar myth 
 worked up with a part of the story of Cinderella. 
 The latter could have been learned from the Canadian 
 French. 
 
 Team means " moose," and by the Micmacs is pro- 
 nounced in two syllables. The author has ventured 
 to anglicize it to one. 
 
 X. HOW THE LITTLE RABBIT SNARED THE SUN 
 Tribe, Omaha ; home, eastern and central Nebraska 
 
 The snare is a simple noose set in places where 
 animals are wont to run. The Omahas lived in a 
 prairie country where forest growths are found only 
 along water courses. In such woodlands animals 
 often made paths in going to water. 
 
152 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 XI. THE MAGIC WIGWAM 
 Tribe, Passamaquoddy ; home, about Passamaquoddy Bay, Maine 
 
 It is not long since every New England farmer laid 
 in winter provisions of smoked meat, dried berries and 
 sweet corn, and maple sugar. 
 
 The partridge is the ruffed grouse which feeds 
 on the tender buds of the birch. The New England 
 Indians used birch bark as a covering for their wig- 
 wams. This has a whitish appearance like snow. 
 
 XII. WHY THE BABY SAYS " GOO " 
 Tribe, Penobscot ; home, valley of the Penobscot, Maine 
 
 Maple sugar was an important article of diet with 
 the New England Indians, who taught the art of mak- 
 ing it to the whites. The sap was collected in wooden 
 troughs and was boiled into sirup by dropping into it 
 red-hot stones. 
 
 XIII. THE WREN 
 
 Tribe, Cherokee ; home, mountainous region of Tennessee, 
 Georgia, and Alabama 
 
 Hominy was made of maize, or Indian corn. The 
 kernels were broken in a wooden mortar. Making 
 hominy was girls' and women's work. 
 
 A small bow was put into the hands of every Indian 
 boy. With this he was taught to shoot birds and small 
 game. Hence the birds' lament. 
 
EXPLANATORY NOTES 
 
 XIV. THE GOOD GIANTS 
 
 153 
 
 Tribe, Micmac ; home, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and islands of 
 the Gulf of St. Lawrence 
 
 The little dog pointing out land over the ocean is 
 not wholly a myth. " Lieutenant Colonel Kennan . . . 
 had an Eskimo dog which in the thickest fog would 
 scent the land at a great distance and continually 
 point to it " (Leland). 
 
 Dogs were domesticated by all the Indian tribes. 
 They were used as beasts of burden and as watch- 
 dogs. Their flesh was eaten by many tribes. 
 
 XV. THE LITTLE FAWN 
 Tribe, Omaha ; home, eastern and central Nebraska 
 
 A deer's color is protective and blends with that of 
 the thickets which the animal haunts. The under part 
 of the tail, however, is white. When deer are fright- 
 ened the tail is raised and the white "flag" is shown. 
 In this way the members of the herd are able to follow 
 one another. 
 
 A little fawn running with "flag" exposed makes a 
 very funny sight. 
 
 Deer when startled give a kind of shrill snort. This 
 is called the "whistle." 
 
154 MYTHS OF THE RED CHILDREN 
 
 XVI. THE TURKEY MAIDEN 
 Tribe, Zuni ; home, western New Mexico 
 
 Turkeys were domesticated by the Mexican tribes. 
 They were brought to Europe by the Spanish. 
 
 In old times the Zunis owned large flocks of them. 
 They were plucked for their feathers, like geese. The 
 feathers were used in making the famous feather cloth. 
 
 Mantles of native cotton, such as the little Turkey 
 Maiden wore, are still woven by the Zuriis. They are 
 often beautifully embroidered. 
 
 XVII. THE FLYING HEAD 
 Tribe, Iroquois ; home, central and northern New York 
 
 The Flying Head is the personification of the 
 whirlwind or cyclone. 
 
 XVIII. OLD WINTER MAN AND THE SPRING MAIDEN 
 Tribe, Iroquois ; home, central and northern New York 
 
 The Iroquois wigwam was a cabin of birch or elm 
 bark. The door usually faced the rising sun and was 
 closed by the skin of a deer or a bear. Stout-woven 
 mats of rushes were spread upon the floor. 
 
 Such wigwams were apt to be smoky, but otherwise 
 were fairly comfortable and warm. 
 
 For the Chippewa or Ojibway form of this myth, see 
 Section II of Hiawatha. 
 
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