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It so happened that this chief's daughter was taken very ill with a
strange affection. All the people were very anxious as to the outcome of
her illness. Every known remedy was tried in an attempt to cure her, but
none had any effect.
Near the lodge of this chief stood a great tree, which every year bore
corn used for food. One of the friends of the chief had a dream, in which
he was advised to tell the chief that in order to cure his daughter he
must lay her beside this tree, and that he must have the tree dug up. This
advice was carried out to the letter.
While the people were at work and the young woman lay there, a young man
came along. He was very angry and said: "It is not at all right to destroy
this tree. Its fruit is all that we have to live on." With this remark he
gave the young woman who lay there ill a shove with his foot, causing her
to fall into the hole that had been dug.
Now, that hole opened into this world, which was then all water, on which
floated waterfowl of many kinds. There was no land at that time. It came
to pass that as these waterfowl saw this young woman falling they shouted,
"Let us receive her," whereupon they, at least some of them, joined their
bodies together, and the young woman fell on this platform of bodies. When
these were wearied they asked, "Who will volunteer to care for this
woman_"
The great Turtle then took her, and when he got tired of holding her, he
in turn asked who would take his place. At last the question arose as to
what they should do to provide her with a permanent resting place in this
world. Finally it was decided to prepare the earth, on which she would
live in the future.
To do this it was determined that soil from the bottom of the primal sea
should be brought up and placed on the broad, firm carapace of the Turtle,
where it would increase in size to such an extent that it would
accommodate all the creatures that should be produced thereafter. After
much discussion the toad was finally persuaded to dive to the bottom of
the waters in search of soil. Bravely making the attempt, he succeeded in
bringing up soil from the depths of the sea. This was carefully
spread over the carapace of the Turtle, and at once both began to
grow in size and depth.
After the young woman recovered from the illness from which she suffered
when she was cast down from the upper world, she built herself a shelter,
in which she lived quite contentedly. In the course of time she brought
forth a girl baby, who grew rapidly in size and intelligence.
When the daughter had grown to young womanhood, the mother and she were
accustomed to go out to dig wild potatoes. Her mother had said to her that
in doing this she must face the West at all times. Before long the young
daughter gave signs that she was about to become a mother. Her mother
reproved her, saying that she had violated the injunction not to face the
east, as her condition showed that she had faced the wrong way while
digging potatoes.
It is said that the breath of the West Wind had entered her person,
causing conceptions When the days of her delivery were at hand, she
overheard twins within her body in a hot debate as to which should be born
first and as to the proper place of exit, one declaring that he was going
to emerge through the armpit of his mother, the other saying that he would
emerge in the natural way.[33] The first one born, who was of a reddish
color, was called Othagwenda; that is, Flint. The other, who was light in
color, was called Djuskaha; that is, the Little Sprout.
The grandmother of the twins liked Djuskaha and hated the other; so they
cast Othagwenda into a hollow tree some distance from the lodge.
The boy that remained in the lodge grew very rapidly, and soon was able to
make himself bows and arrows and to go out to hunt in the vicinity.
Finally, for several days he returned home without his bow and arrows. At
last he was asked why he had to have a new bow and arrows every morning.
He replied that there was a young boy in a hollow tree in the neighborhood
who used them. The grandmother inquired where the tree stood, and he told
her; whereupon then they went there and brought the other boy home again.
When the boys had grown to man's estate, they decided that it was
necessary for them to increase the size of their island, so they agreed to
start out together, afterward separating to create forests and lakes and
other things. They parted as agreed, Othagwenda going westward and
Djuskaha eastward. In the course of time, on returning, they met in their
shelter or lodge at night, then agreeing to go the next day to see what
each had made. First they went west to see what Othagwenda had made. It
was found that he had made the country all rocks and full of ledges, and
also a mosquito which was very large.
Djuskaha asked the mosquito to run, in order that he might see 'whether
the insect could fight. The mosquito ran, and sticking his bill through a
sapling, thereby made it fall, at which Djuskaha said, "That will not be
right, for you would kill the people who are about to come." So, seizing
him, he rubbed him down in his hands, causing him to become very small.
then he blew on the mosquito, whereupon he flew away. He also modified
some of the other animals which his brother had made. After returning to
their lodge, they agreed to go the next day to see what Djuskaha had
fashioned.
On visiting the east the next day, they found that Djuskaha had made a
large number of animals which were so fat that they could hardly move;
that he had made the sugar-maple trees to drop syrup; that he had made the
sycamore tree to bear fine fruit; that the rivers were so formed that half
the water flowed upstream and the other half downstream. Then the reddish
colored brother, Othagwenda, was greatly displeased with what his brother
had made, saying that the people who were about to come would live too
easily and be too happy.
So he shook violently the various animals--the bears, deer, and
turkeys--causing them to become small at once, a characteristic which
attached itself to their descendants. He also caused the sugar maple to
drop sweetened water only, and the fruit of the sycamore to become small
and useless; and lastly he caused the water of the rivers to flow in only
one direction, because the original plan would make it too easy for the
human beings who were about to come to navigate the streams.
The inspection of each other's work resulted in a deadly disagreement
between the brothers, who finally came to grips and blows, and Othagwenda
was killed in the fierce struggle.
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