Part 19

The rabbit was pleased to hear the frog was such a great hunter, and gladly offered to carry the frog to the lodge of the beavers that some food could be procured. The frog accepted the offer and was carried to the creek bank. The rabbit then built a dam of stakes across the stream and below the lodges in order that the beavers should not escape. The frog then directed the rabbit to break into the top of the lodge so that the frog might get at the beavers to kill them. While the rabbit was breaking into the lodge of the beavers, the frog purposely loosened some of the stakes of the weir below in order to allow the beavers to escape, hoping that the rabbit would become angry at him for so doing. When the rabbit saw what mischief the frog had done, he took the frog and roughly shoved him under the ice into the water. This did not harm the frog as it could live under water as well as on land, but the rabbit did not know that, so he believed he had drowned his brother the frog. The rabbit then returned to his home, regretting he had acted so harshly and began to cry for his brother. The frog in the meanwhile, killed all of the beavers and tied them together on a string, then slowly crawled to the rabbit's home with his burden on his back. The frog crept up to the tent but was afraid to enter so he began to play with the door flap of the tent to make a noise to attract the attention of the rabbit within. Finally he cried out to the rabbit, "Brother, give me a piece of fire for I am very cold." The rabbit did not recognize the tired, weak voice of his brother frog, and, afraid lest it be some enemy endeavoring to entice him from his home, picked up a piece of dead coal which had no fire on it and flung it outside. The frog then said, "Brother, there is no fire on this piece and I can not cook my beavers with it." The rabbit then ran out quickly and tenderly carried the frog inside, and immediately the latter began to moan and appear to suffer so much that the rabbit inquired what was the matter and asked if the beavers had bitten him. The frog said, "No, it was you who gave me such a hard push that you have hurt me in the side." The rabbit assured the frog that the injury was unintentionally caused. The frog then directed the rabbit to prepare and cook the beavers. The rabbit went out to fetch them but he began to eat and did not stop until they were all devoured. After having finished eating them the rabbit went for a walk. Ere long he noticed a huge smoke curling from the farther end of a valley and becoming greatly frightened he exclaimed, "I have forgotten my crooked knife and I must go quickly to get it." He dashed into his door in a terrible state of mind. The frog coolly inquired, "What is the matter that you are so scared?" The rabbit said, "I have seen a great smoke at the farther end of the valley through which the creek runs." The frog laughed loudly at his fear and said, "They are deer; my brothers often had me to kill them, as they could not kill any, when we had no meat." The rabbit was delighted at that so he offered to carry the frog toward the place. The frog directed the rabbit to make a snowshoe for the one foot of the frog. The rabbit soon had it made and gave it to his brother. The frog then said, "Carry me up towards the smoke." The rabbit slung the frog on his back and away they went in the direction of the deer. The frog then told the rabbit to stand in one place and not to move while he (the frog) would work at the deer, and when he had finished he would call him up to the place.

The frog killed all the deer in a very short time, skinned them, and stuck the head and neck of one of the deer into the snow so that it would be looking toward the place whence the rabbit would come. The frog then took the lungs of one of the deer and put it out to freeze. The cold turned the lungs white as tallow. The frog shouted for his brother rabbit to come quickly. When the rabbit came bounding near he saw the eyes of the deer's head staring at him in a queer manner; he was so much alarmed that he exclaimed to the frog, "Brother, he sees me." The frog smiled and said, "I have killed him; he is dead; come on; I have a nice piece of fat saved for you." (It was the frozen lungs of the deer.) So he gave the rabbit a large piece and told him to eat it all and quickly, as it was better when frozen and fresh from the deer's back. The rabbit greedily swallowed large portions and did not observe the deception. After a time they built a lodge or tent for the night. Some few hours after the tent was made the frozen deer lungs which the rabbit had eaten began to thaw and it made the rabbit so violently ill that he vomited continually the entire night. The frog had served him this trick as a punishment for having eaten all of the beaver meat two days before.

_The wolverene and the rock._--A wolverene was out walking on the hillside and came upon a large rock. The animal inquired of the rock, "Was that you who was walking just now?" The rock replied, "No, I can not move; hence I can not walk." The wolverene retorted that he had seen it walking. The rock quickly informed the wolverene that he uttered a falsehood. The wolverene remarked, "You need not speak in that manner for I have seen you walking." The wolverene ran off a little distance and taunted the rock, challenging it to catch him. The wolverene then approached the rock and having struck it with his paw, said, "See if you can catch me." The rock answered, "I can not run but I can roll." The wolverene began to laugh and said, "That is what I want." The wolverene ran away and the rock rolled after him, keeping just at his heels. The animal finally began to tire and commenced to jump over sticks and stones until at last the rock was touching his heels. At last the wolverene tripped over a stick and fell. The rock rolled over on him and ceased to move when it came upon the hind parts of the wolverene. The animal screamed, "Get off, go away, you are hurting me; you are breaking my bones." The rock remained motionless and replied, "You tormented me and had me run after you, so now I shall not stir until some one takes me off."

The wolverene replied, "I have many brothers and I shall call them." He called to the wolves and the foxes to come and remove the rock. These animals soon came up to where the rock was lying on the wolverene and they asked him, "How came you to get under the rock?" The wolverene replied, "I challenged the rock to catch me and it rolled on me." The wolves and foxes then told him that it served him right to be under the rock. They endeavored, after a time, to displace the rock but could not move it in the least. The wolverene then said, "Well, if you cannot get me out I shall call my other brother, the lightning and thunder." So he began to call for the lightning to come to his aid. In a few moments a huge dark cloud came rushing from the southwest, and as it hurried up it made so much noise that it frightened the wolves and foxes, but they asked the lightning to take off the coat of the wolverene but not to harm, his flesh. They then ran away. The lightning darted back to gather force and struck the rock, knocking it into small pieces and also completely stripped the skin from the back of the wolverene, tearing the skin into small pieces. The wolverene stood naked, but soon began to pick up the pieces of his coat and told the lightning, "You need not have torn my coat when you had only the rock to strike."

The wolverene gathered up his pieces of coat and said he would go to his sister, the frog, to have her sew them together. He repaired to the swamp where his sister dwelt and asked her to sew them. She did so. The wolverene took it up and told her she had not put it together properly and struck her on the head and knocked her flying into the water. He took up the coat and went to his younger sister, the mouse. He directed her to sew his coat as it should be done. The mouse began to sew the pieces together and when it was done the wolverene carefully examined every seam and said, "You have sewed it very well; you will live in the tall green grass in the summer and in grass houses in the winter." The wolverene put on his coat and went away.

_Creation of people by the wolverene and the muskrat._--As a wolverene was wandering along the bank of a river he saw a muskrat swimming in the edge of the water. He accosted the latter animal with the inquiry, "Who are you? Are you a man or a woman?" The muskrat answered, "I am a woman." The wolverene informed her that he would take her for a wife. The muskrat replied, "I live in the water; how can I be your wife?" The wolverene told her that she could live on the land as well as in the water. The muskrat went up on the bank to where the wolverene was standing. They selected a place and she began to prepare a home for them. They ate their suppers and retired. Soon after a child was born. The wolverene informed his wife that it would be a white man and father of all the white people. When this child was born it made a natural exit. In due time a second child was born which the wolverene decreed should be an Indian and the father of their kind. This child was born from its mother's mouth. After a time a third child was born, and the wolverene announced it to be an Eskimo and father of its kind. This child was born _ab ano_. In the natural course of events a fourth child was born, and the wolverene decided it to be an Iroquois and father of its kind. This child was born from its mother's nose. After a time a fifth child was born and the wolverene decreed it should be a Negro and father of its kind. This child was born from its mother's ears. These children remained with their parents until they grew up. Their mother then called them together and announced to them that they must separate. She sent them to different places of the land, and, in parting, directed them to go to the white men whenever they were in need of anything, as the whites would have everything ready for them.

_Origin of the whitish spot on the throat of the marten._--A man had a wife whom a marten fell in love with and endeavored to possess. Whenever the man would go away from his home the marten would enter, sit by the woman's side, and endeavor to entice her to leave her husband and go to live with him. One day the man returned unexpectedly and caught the marten sitting by the side of his wife. The marten ran out. The man inquired of his wife what the marten wanted there. The woman replied that the marten was striving to induce her to desert him and become his own wife.

The next time the man went off he told his wife to fill a kettle with water and put it on the fire to boil. The man went outside and secreted himself near the house. He soon saw the marten go into the house.

The man stole quietly to the door of the house and listened to the marten, which was talking to his wife. The man sprang into the house and said: "Marten, what are you doing here, what are you trying to do?" The man seized the kettle of hot water and dashed it on the breast of the animal. The marten began to scratch his burning bosom and ran out into the woods; and because he was so severely hurt he now keeps in the densest forests, away from the sight of man.

_The Indian and his beaver wife._--One day an Indian was hunting along the bank of a stream and in the distance saw a beaver's house. In a moment he perceived a beaver swimming toward him. He drew up and was on the point of shooting it when the animal exclaimed, "Do not shoot, I have something to say to you." The Indian inquired, "What is it you have to say?" The beaver asked him, "Would you have me for a wife?" The Indian replied, "I can not live in the water with you." The beaver answered, "You will not know you are living in the water, if you will follow me." The Indian further remarked that he could not live on willows and other woods like a beaver. The beaver assured him that when eating them he would not think them to be willows. She added, "I have a nice house to live in." The man replied, "My brother will be looking for me if I come in and he will not know where I am." The beaver directed the man to take off his clothing and leave them on the bank and to follow her. The Indian did as he was instructed. As he was wading through the water he did not feel the water touching him; so they presently began to swim and soon reached the home of the beaver. The beaver told him as she pointed ahead, "There is my home, and you will find it as good and comfortable as your own tent." They both entered and she soon set before him some food which he did not recognize as willow bark. After they had slept two nights his brother became alarmed and went to search for him, and soon found his track. In following it up his brother came to where he had left his clothing on the bank of the stream.

The brother was distressed at finding such things, so went sorrowfully back to the tent thinking that his brother had been drowned, and so told the other Indians when he arrived. With a heavy heart he went to bed and in the morning he awakened and told his wife that he had dreamed his brother was living with a beaver. He told his wife to make some new clothing for the lost brother as he would go and seek the haunts of the beavers to discover his brother. The man occupied himself in making a pair of snowshoes, while the wife prepared the clothing. The next day she had the clothing done and he directed her to make them into a small bundle as he would start on the search early the next morning. Other young men desired to accompany him on the search, but were advised to remain at home as their presence would prevent him from reaching the beaver's retreat. Early in the morning he started off, taking the clothes and snowshoes with him. After some time he found the place where the beaver had her house and in which he suspected his brother to be living. He went to work to make a dam across the stream so as to decrease the depth of water around the beaver's house. The wife had borne two children to the husband by this time, and when the father had seen the water going from their house he told the children: "Your uncle is coming and he is certain to kill you." The water had soon gone down sufficiently to enable the man to cross the stream to where the house was situated.

On arriving there he began pounding at the mud walls. The father told the children to go out or else the house would fall on them. The man outside quickly killed the two young ones. The wife knew she would soon be killed also, and after they had heard the deathblows given to their children she said to her husband, "If you are sorry that I am killed and ever want to see me again, keep the right hand and arm of my body; take off the skin and keep it about you." In a few minutes the brother had begun again to tear out the sides of the lodge. The husband told her to go out, and that his love for her would make him keep her right hand. She then went out and was quickly killed with a stick. When this was done and the husband had heard it all he was very sorry for his wife. Again the man began to destroy the rest of the house and soon had a large hole in the wall of one side. The husband then said to him, "What are you doing? You are making me very cold." The brother replied, "I have brought some warm clothing for you and you will not feel cold." "Throw them in," said the husband, "for I am freezing." He put on the clothes, and while he was doing it the brother noticed the hairs which had grown on the other's back, but said nothing about it. The husband then sat in his house until the other was near freezing to death. The brother then said to him, "Come with me; you can not stay here." The husband demanded, as a condition of returning, that the brother should never say anything to him to make him angry if he went back. The brother promised him not to do so. They then started to return, the brother taking the bodies of the children and mother on his back, the husband walking ahead. They soon arrived at the home of their people. The brother threw down the beavers and directed his wife to skin them. The husband of the beaver asked for the right hand and arm of the beaver who had been his wife. It was given to him. He got one of the other women to skin it, and told her to dry the skin and return it to him. Three nights after their return to their people a great many beavers were killed and a large kettle full of flesh was boiled for food. The people pressed the runaway brother to eat of the flesh of the beavers. He informed them that if it was the flesh of a female beaver he would not eat it. They told him that the flesh of the male beavers was all finished long ago. They forced him to eat a large piece of meat, and when he had swallowed it they gave him more of it. The second piece was no sooner down his throat than a large river gushed from his side. The Indian jumped into the river, while the rest ran away in terror and, as these latter looked down the river, they saw the man swimming by the side of his wife who had been a beaver.

_The venturesome hare._--A hare, which had lost his parents, lived with his grandmother. One day, feeling very hungry, for they were extremely poor, he asked his grandmother if he could set a net to catch fish. The old woman laughed at the idea of a hare catching fish, but to humor him, she consented, for she was indulgent to him because he was her only charge and looked forward to the time when he should be able to support her by his own exertions, and not to rely on the scanty supplies which she was able to obtain. These were very meager, as she was infirm, and dreaded exposure. She then told him to go and set the net, but added that she had no fire to cook them with, even if he should catch any. The hare promised to procure fire if he caught the fish. He went to set the net in a lake where he knew fish to be plentiful. The next morning he went to the net and found it to be so full of fish that he was unable to take it up. He lifted one end and saw there was a fish in every mesh of the net. He shook out some of the fish and then drew out the net. Part of the fish were buried, and a large load taken home. He put the fish down outside of the tent, and went in. He told the old woman to clean the fish and that he would go across the river to the Indians' tent and get the fire with which to cook them. The old woman was speechless at such proposed rashness, but as he had been able to catch so many fish she refrained remarking on his contemplated project of obtaining fire in the face of such danger. While the old woman was cleaning the fish he went back after the net which he had put out to dry on the shore of the lake.

He folded it up, placed it under his arm, and ran to the edge of the river which was far too wide to jump over. He used his cunning and assembled a number of whales. These animals came puffing up the stream in obedience to his command. He ordered them to arrange themselves side by side across the stream so that he could walk across on their backs. He most dreaded the Indians, but jumped into the water to wet his fur. This being done he sprang from one whale to another until he was safe on the opposite shore. He then laid down in the sand and bade the whales to disperse. Some Indian children soon came playing along the sandy bank and saw the hare lying there. One of the children picked up the hare and started home with it. When the boy arrived and told how he had obtained the hare he was directed to put it in the iron tent (kettle) where there was a bright fire crackling.

The child put down the hare, upon which an old man told the boy to kill the hare. The hare was terribly frightened, but opened a part of one eye to ascertain whether there was any place of exit beside the door. In the top of the tent he observed a large round hole. He then said to himself: "I wish a spark of fire would fall on my net." Instantly the brands rolled and a great spark fell on the net and began to burn it. The hare was afraid of the fire, so he sprang out of the hole in the apex of the tent. The Indians saw they had been outwitted by a hare, and began to shout and pursue the animal, which attained such speed that when he came to the bank of the river he had not time to recall the whales. He gave an extraordinary leap and cleared the entire expanse of the water. He examined the net and found the fire smouldering. On arrival at his own home he said to his grandmother: "Did I not tell you I would get the fire?" The old woman ventured to inquire how he had crossed the river. He coolly informed her that he had jumped across.