| |
The man went to look after his net in
the morning, and found a jackfish with a large head. As he was going to
kill the fish, it said, "Hold on, old man! Don't kill me right away!" The
old man stopped, and the fish told the old man to take all its scales off
and not to lose any, and to go and put these in the garden. It also told
him to cut off its fins and place them in the garden, to cut its head off
and give it to his wife to eat, half of its body to be fed to the dog, and
the other end to the horse.
He told the old man to shut the stable, but not to look at it for four
days and four nights, and not to look at the scales for four days and four
nights, but each morning after that he could look. The old man then killed
it and took it home. He told his wife about it; and she asked, "Is that
true_"--"Yes," answered the old man, and repeated all. "We will obey. We
are poor and hungry; maybe we shall have good luck."
He scaled and cut the fish and put it in the garden. He also fed his wife,
dog, and horse as he had been told, and shut the stable. For four days and
nights he could not sleep. His wife became pregnant; and on the
fourth morning she had two sons, and the old man was glad. He ran to the
stable, and found that the mare had two foals, the dog two pups. He went
to the garden, and there was silver money where the scales had been
placed. There were two fine swords where the fins had been. The old man
ran in to tell his wife what had happened, and they were delighted. After
that the old man caught many fish. Soon his boys grew up.
One time, when they were home in the evening, the elder boy said, "Are
there any other people in the world_"--"Certainly, there are many
people."--"Where can I find them_"--"You can find them anywhere." The
youth said, "I will start to-morrow to try to visit some people." He left
his sword, and told his brother, "I shall take yours, and leave mine
hanging here. Do not touch it! If I have trouble or if I am killed, it
will become rusty." Then he went off. About dinner-time he dismounted and
drank from a spring. He found silver water; and when he dipped his little
finger into it, it became solid silver. He put some of the water on the
horse's ears, and they became silver. He did the same to the dog's and
also on his own hair. Then he started off.
When he came to a large town, he took off his clothes, found some old
ones, and put rags around his finger and a handkerchief over his hair. He
had a little box in which he put the horse and dog after making them small
and hid them in a blacksmith's shop. The blacksmith looked at him. "Where
are you from_"--"Is there a town here_ I am very poor."--"Oh, come in!"
The blacksmith fed him.
The man said, "I can keep you here," and engaged him to do the chores in
the house. He staid there a while, when one night the blacksmith came home
and said, "The king of this town has a fine daughter, and she is going to
be fed to the Windigo that has eight heads. He eats only people."--"When
is she going to be taken there_"--"To-morrow morning."
The next day, after his work, the young man went out. He mounted his
horse, took his dog, put on his own clothes, and rode out of the city.
After a while he heard some one weeping in the woods. He turned in that
direction, and found a young girl who was crying. She stopped when she saw
him.
The young man asked her, "Why are you crying_"--"There is no use telling
you."--"Oh, no! tell me! Where are you going_"--"There is no use telling
you."--"Oh, yes! you must tell me." Then the girl, seeing that he was a
stranger, said, "I will tell you. I am going to yonder bluff. There is an
eight-headed manitou there, and I am going to be eaten by
him."--"Why_"--"He wants me."--"What if you do not go_"--"Then he would
devour every one in the city. Therefore I must go."
Then the youth said, "I will go first. You can go when I come back."--"No,
No! you must not go. I am not going there for life, I am going there to
die."--"If that is so, I must see him first."--"Oh, no!" The young man
said, "I will go and come back. You stay here."--"Well, go on! but he will
kill you," and she gave the boy a ring. He then went to the bluff, and saw
that the trees were shaken by the breath of the manitou. He stopped, and
said to his horse and dog, "Try as hard as you can to help me," and then
he rode on.
The horse and dog sank deep into the soil. The boy took his sword and cut
off one head, which sprang back again. Then he told his dog to catch it;.
and he hit the monster again, cutting off another of his heads. The dog
seized it and shook it. The youth cut off another one, and the horse
kicked it. When he had cut off four heads, the manitou was not breathing
very strongly.
Finally he killed him. He cut out all the tongues and put them in a
handkerchief. When he came back, he found the girl waiting, and told her
that he had killed the manitou. He told the girl to go home and take the
tongues with her, but not to tell who killed the manitou. "Give the
tongues to your father, and say that a young fellow did it, but that you
do not know who."
The blacksmith was working at home. "Where are you going,--home_ No, you
have to be eaten by the manitou."--"The manitou has been killed."--"Nobody
can kill him." The girl showed him the tongues. Then the blacksmith
believed her, and asked her who had killed him. "I do not know, he is a
youth."--"Go home and tell your father that I killed him. If you don't, I
will kill you."
The girl agreed, and he went with her. Her father and mother asked her why
she had come back, and she told them that the blacksmith had killed the
manitou. She called him in, and they asked him, "How did you do it_"--"I
hit his tongues."
The king was very glad, and gave the girl to the blacksmith. The youth
went home, put his horse back into the box, and dressed in his old
clothes.
There was to be a four-days' dance before the wedding. After three night's
dance, the blacksmith was very glad, and told the boy that this was the
last night. Then the lad put on his clothes. He came into the lodge and
sat down by the door. The girl knew him at once, and told her father
secretly that he had slain the monster.
The king invited him to a better place. The blacksmith wanted to go out,
pretending that his stomach pained him, but he was not allowed to leave.
He was locked up, taken to the sea, and thrown in. The youth married the
girl; and the king gave him half of the town, half of his money, and half
of everything he owned, he was so glad that his daughter had been saved.
They went upstairs into their rooms. There was a window at the top on the
east side of the house, and from there could be seen a blue fire at a
distance.
"What kind of fire is that_" asked the youth.
"Do not ask about it," said the princess, "and never go near it."
On the next day he took his little horse and dog and went to the fire.
There he saw an old, long house. He entered the first room, but there was
no one there. After a while he heard some one. The door opened, and a
white-headed old woman came in, and said, "Grandchild, hold your little
dog, he will bite me. I am cold."--"Warm yourself, the dog will not touch
you."--"You must tie him"--"I have nothing to tie him with."
So the old lady gave him one hair, and said, "Nosis, tie him with that."
The youth did so, and also tied the horse. The old woman had a cane. She
touched him with it on the feet, and he died.
One morning the other youth, who had been left at home, saw rust on the
sword. He said to his father, " I fear brother is dead somewhere, for his
sword is rusty. I must go and try to find him." His father consented, and
told him to be careful.
The next morning the elder brother left. About noon he found the same
spring, and did as his brother had done. In the evening he came to the
city and went to the chief's house. The girl came out and kissed him, and
asked him where he had been, but he did not answer. They had supper, and
he thought to himself "That must be my brother's wife." At night he
refused to go to bed. Through the window he saw the blue fires. He asked,
"What kind of fires are those_"--"Why did you not go over to see_"
In the morning he went there. When he arrived there, he saw his brother's
horse and dog tied with brass wire, lying down and frozen to death. He
went into the lodge, and saw that his brother also lay dead by the fire.
Soon he heard some one coming. An old woman appeared, and said, "I am
cold."--"Warm yourself by the fire."--"First tie your little dog."
He refused to do so, and finally said, "Now, granny, make that man and
horse and dog alive! If you do not do so at once, I shall send the dog
after you."--"Nosis, I cannot bring a dead man to life"--"You have
to."--"No."
Then he set his dog on her. The dog bit her, and the horse kicked her.
"Stop! I'll bring them to life." He stopped the animals, and the old woman
walked forward. The youth kept away from her cane. She told him to take up
a little bottle and put it on his frozen brother. As soon as he dropped
some of the liquid from the bottle into his mouth, he came to. She did the
same to the dog and to the horse.
Then the brothers killed the old woman. They took the bottle away from her
and went home. As. they rode along together, the elder brother said, "You
must be married. Yes. Your wife mistook me for you, but I only let her
sleep with my arm. That's how I found out."
The younger brother, on hearing this, became jealous. He drew back and
shot his brother with his revolver. He also shot his dog and horse. Then
he went home, and his wife was glad to see him. She asked him why he
refused to sleep with her last night. "You only let me have your hand."
Then the brother began to sorrow for his brother.
He took his horse and went back to the corpse. There he wept over his
brother. His little dog ran around the dead body, and began to look inside
the coat. There he found the old woman's little bottle. He put some of the
liquid on the wound, and thus brought the brother back to life. Then he
dropped some on the dog and the horse, and they all came to.
They went home, put their horses and dogs away, entered the lodge, and sat
down. The younger one's wife saw them, and was unable to tell them apart.
On the following day they started to return to their parents. When they
came to a forked road, they decided to go in different directions. The
elder one took one road, and said, "I will go this way, and my name will
be God." The other said, "I will follow the other, and I will be the
Devil." That's the end of it.
Click here to Return to the Native
American Myth and Folklore contents page
|
