The origin of Death
A Yauelmani Yokut Legend
It was Coyote who brought it about that people die. He made it thus because our hands are not closed like his. He wanted our hands to be like his, but kondjodji, said to him: "No, they must have my hand." He had five fingers and Coyote had only a fist. So now we have an open hand with five fingers. But then Coyote said: "Well, then they will have to die."

The origin of Fire
A Yaudanchi Yokut Legend
The people in the foothills had no fire. Only to the west in the plains was there a man who had fire, and he had it all.

Now when he slept, the antelope, selected for its swiftness, was sent to steal his fire. It took it and fled. It was again in sight of the place from which it had started, when a rain came, which put out the fire.

Then others tried to bring it. The last was the jackrabbit. After he had stolen the fire, he bid in a thick brush, shek'ei. There he burrowed. Then he crouched over the fire, holding it in his hands under his belly. From this the palms of his hands are black. When he stole the fire it was not extinguished; and so he obtained it for the people.

The Pleiades
A Tachi Yokut Legend
The Pleiades were five girls and a flea, baakil. The girls sang and played all night in the sky. The flea constantly went with them. They did not like the other men that came to them; they liked only him. They did not like the other men that came to them ran away, but the flea went with them. And they let him marry them. He married all five.

Now he turned into a flea, and in summer became sick with the itch. The girls did not like him any longer. They said: "Let us run away. Where shall we go?" Then they agreed to go east together. "When shall we go?" they said. "As soon as he sleeps."

Now the flea slept and the five got up and went off. After they were far away the flea woke up and thought: "Where are my wives?" He found that they had gone away.

He thought: "Where shall I go?" He went east. At last he came in sight of them, just before he reached the ocean. He said: "I will catch you."

They said: "He is coming. Let us go on." They ran on again. Then one asked: "Do you see him again!" Another said: "Yes, he is near." Then they said: "Let us go up into the air. Then he cannot come with us." Then they went up. But the man rose, too. That is why there are five stars close together now in the Pleiades and one at the side. That one is he, the flea.

Note : The Yaudanchi have a myth about the Pleiades. They say that they were girls who rose to the sky. One was pregnant and could not rise. She turned to a rock. One or more stars near them are young men who followed them.

The Owl Doctor
A Gashowu Yokut Legend
The prairie falcon made war on the northerners and was killed. Coyote claimed to be a medicine man and was the first to doctor him. He was merely a pretender who wanted to obtain pay. Then others, all owls, doctored him. Hihina, the large owl, sodut, the white owl, wedjiji, the ground owl, and hihimcha, the small owl, were the ones who doctored him. It was the white owl that cured him.

The owners of the Sun
A Tachi Yokut Legend
In the Tachi territory in the Coast Range is a circle of large rocks. These are certain people who had the sun. They kept it in the middle of the circle, just above their heads.

Coyote and the eagle took it away from them. Then they became ashamed and turned to stone. If one speaks to them now, they still answer; but it is hard to reach that place, for they do not like to be seen by anyone, and when one approaches it he meets wind and rain.

The Prairie Falcon Fights
A Yaudanchi Yokut Legend
Long ago the prairie falcon [Limik] lived alone. He came to a village. He returned. Then he went again. He reached a rock. He sat on top of it and laid his bow down on it. Then he thought: "It will be good if I kill them."

He started again. Then he began the fight. He shot at them. At once the people there all became angry. There was a great battle. He killed them all. Then he hung up the hair of the killed on trees. It can be seen still [as moss] at a place called khodomo [probably in the territory of the Shoshonean Tübatulabal or Pitanisha].

The Prairie Falcon Loses
A Yaudanchi Yokut Legend
The prairie falcon shouted because he beat all the people at playing. Then the dove and the meadow-lark told Coyote: "Go and cuckold him." Coyote said: "Yes, I will do it." He went up the mountain.

Halfway up was a spring. From there Coyote went to the summit. He rolled himself down. At each bound he cried: "I am the prairie falcon, I am the prairie falcon!" When he had rolled to the spring he looked at himself in the water. He resembled the prairie falcon a little. He went to the top of the mountain again and rolled down once more, crying: "I am the prairie falcon." Then he looked at himself in the spring and thought: "I am a little more like him."

Again he went to the top and rolled down. Then he looked at himself in the water. Now he was the prairie falcon. Then he said: "Let me have a stick." Then he had his stick and went to the prairie falcon's house. He leaned the stick against the entrance and said to the woman: "Give me my ball."

She asked him: "Where is it?"

"It is there at our pillow."

She could not find it. So she said: "Come, get it yourself." Coyote entered the house, lifted up the pillow, and there was the ball. The prairie falcon's wife asked: "Why did you not take it when you went?" Then he hugged her. And then he cohabited with her. When he went out of the house, the woman saw his tail sticking out. He went where they were playing.

Now the dove won and the meadow-lark won, and the prairie falcon lost. He lost all his beads.

The Prairie Falcon's Wife
A Yaudanchi Yokut Legend
The prairie falcon lived there. His wife, the duck, lived there. Coyote lived there with them. The three were there. Then the prairie falcon went off. He told Coyote: "Do not sleep."

Then the prairie falcon's wife went off from there. She gathered seeds. Then they [the woman and Coyote] returned. The prairie falcon also returned. They all returned safely.

Then in the morning the prairie falcon again went. He told Coyote: "Do not sleep." Then the prairie falcon's wife again went. Now Coyote slept while she gathered seeds.

Then the condor saw her from above. Then he came from there. He lit near the prairie falcon's wife. He said to her: "We will go up."

The woman said to him: "I will not go."

He said to her: "We will go." Then she agreed. She said to him: "How shall I go?"

He said to her: "Lie down right here on my back." Then they two went off. They went up. Then they arrived there, far off, at the hole of our world. An old man was there. Now the two lived there. The woman was with him. The old man there guarded the woman. Then the prairie falcon came home. He said: "Where is my wife?"

Then he [Coyote] said: "I do not know."

He said to him: "What did you do? Did you sleep?"

He said: "Yes, I slept." Now they two looked for her. They did not find her. Then they sent the dove to look. The dove did not find her. Then they sent the buzzard also. The buzzard did not find her. They sent also the large fly, and he did not find her. Then they sent the large lizard, k'ondjedja [species?]. Then the lizard came out from the rock. He looked about. He saw the hole of our world above. Then the lizard said: "Far up." Then they sent the large fly again. He went up. He came there above to the hole of our world.

Then the fly saw that woman. From there he went back. He came to the prairie falcon. He told the prairie falcon: "Your wife is above there." Now the condor went. He said to the old man: "Do not say this to my wife; do not tell her: 'Bring water!' Well, now I am going." Then the condor went.

Now the prairie falcon arrived there where the water was. Then the prairie falcon saw his wife there. He told his wife: "Do not say anything." Then he went from there. He arrived there. Then the old man said to him: "Where are you going?"

Then he said: "I am traveling for nothing." Then he said: "I am going now." He told his wife: "Come to me there where the water is." Then his wife said: "Yes." Then the prairie falcon had gone. That old man slept. Then the prairie falcon's wife went. Then the prairie falcon's wife came to him at the water. Then they went. Now they two arrived at their house.

How the Twins of War and Chance, Áhaiyúta and Mátsailéma, fared with the Unborn-Made Men of the Underworld
A Zuni Legend
Now, the Twain Little-ones, Áhaiyúta and Mátsailéma, were ever seeking scenes of contention; for what was deathly and dreadful to others was lively and delightful to them; so that cries of distress were ever their calls of invitation, as to a feast or dance is the call of a priest to us.

On a day when the world was quiet, they were sitting by the side of a deep pool. They heard curious sounds coming up through the waters, as though the bubbles were made by moans of the waters affrighted.

"Uh!" cried the elder. "What is that?"

The younger brother turned his ear to the ground and listened.

"There is trouble down there, dire trouble, for the people of the Underworld are shrieking war-cries like daft warriors and wailing like murder-mourners. What can be the matter? Let us descend and see!"

"Just so!" said Áhaiyúta.

Then they covered their heads with their cord-shields--turned upside down--and shut their eyes and stepped into the deep pool.

"Now we are in the dark," said they, "like the dark down there. Well, then, by means of the dark let us go down"--for they had wondrous power, had those Twain; the magic of in-knowing-how thought had they. Down, like light through dark places, they went; dry through the waters; straight toward that village in the Underworld.

"Whew! the poor wretches are already dead," cried they, "and rotting"--for their noses were sooner accustomed to the dark than their eyes, which they now opened.

"We might as well have spared ourselves the coming, and stayed above," said Áhaiyúta.

"Nay, not so," said Mátsailéma. "Let us go on and see how they lived, even if they are dead."

"Very well," said the elder; and as they fared toward the village they could see quite plainly now, for they had made it dark (to themselves) by shutting their eyes in the daylight above, so now they made it light (to themselves) by opening their eyes in the darkness below and simply looking,--it was their way, you know.

"Well, well!" said Mátsailéma, as they came nearer and the stench doubled. "Look at the village; it is full of people; the more they smell of carrion the more they seem alive!"

"Yes, by the chut of an arrow!" exclaimed Áhaiyúta. "But look here! It is food we smell--cooked food, all thrown away, as we throw away bones and corn-cobs because they are too hard to eat and profitless withal. What, now, can be the meaning of this?"

"What, indeed! Who can know save by knowing," replied the younger brother. "Come, let us lie low and watch."

So they went very quietly close to the village, crouched down, and peered in. Some people inside were about to eat. They took fine food steaming hot from the cooking-pots and placed it low down in wide trenchers; then they gathered around and sipped in the steam and savor with every appearance of satisfaction; but they were as chary of touching the food or of letting the food touch them as though it were the vilest of refuse.

"Did you see that?" queried the younger brother. "By the delight of death, but--"

"Hist!" cried the elder. "If they are people of that sort, feeding upon the savor of food, then they will hear the suggestions of sounds better than the sounds themselves, and the very demon fathers would not know how to fare with such people, or to fight them, either!"

"Hah! But already the people had heard! They set up a clamor of War, swarming out to seek the enemy, as well they might, for who would think favorably of a sneaking stranger under the shade of a house-wall watching the food of another? Why, dogs growl even at their own offspring for the like of that!

"Where? Who? What is it?" cried the people, rushing hither and thither like ants in a shower. "Hah! There they are! There! Quick!" cried they, pointing to the Twain, who were cutting away to the nearest hillock. And immediately they fell to singing their war-cry.

"Ha-a! Sús-ki!

Ó-ma-ta

Há-wi-mo-o!

Ó-ma-ta,

Ó-ma-ta Há-wi-mo!"

sang they as they ran headlong toward the Two, and then they began shouting:

"Tread them both into the ground! Smite them both! Fan them out! Ho-o! Ha-a! Há-wi-mo-o ó-ma-ta."

But the Twain laughed and quickly drew their arrows and loosed them amongst the crowd. P'it! tsok! sang the arrows through and through the people, but never a one fell.

"Why, how now is this?" cried the elder brother.

"We'll club them, then!" said Mátsailéma, and he whiffed out his war-club and sprang to meet the foremost whom he pummelled well and sorely over the head and shoulders. Yet the man was only confused (he was too soft and unstable to be hurt); but another, rushing in at one side, was hit by one of the shield-feathers and fell to the ground like smoke driven down under a hawk's wing.

"Hold, brother, I have it! Hold cried Áhaiyúta. Then he snatched up a bunch of dry plume-grass and leaped forward. Swish! Two ways he swept the faces and breasts of the pursuers.

Lo! right and left they fell like bees in a rainstorm, and quickly sued for mercy, screeching and running at the mere sight of the grass-straws.

"You fools!" cried the brothers. "Why, then, did ye set upon us? We came for to help you and were merely looking ahead as becomes strangers in strange places, when, lo! you come running out like a mess of mad flies with your 'Ha-a sús-ki ó-ma-la!' Call us coyote-sneaks, do you? But there! Rest fearless! We hunger; give us to eat."

So they led the Twain into the court within the town and quickly brought steaming food for them.

They sat down and began to blow the food to cool it, whereupon the people cried out in dismay: "Hold! Hold, ye heedless strangers; do not waste precious food like that! For shame!"

"Waste food? Ha! This is the way we eat! said they, and clutching up huge morsels they crammed their mouths full and bolted them almost whole.

The people were so horrified and sickened at sight of this, that some of them sweated furiously,--which was their way of spewing--whilst others, stouter of thought, cried: "Hold! hold! Ye will die; ye will surely sicken and die if the stuff do but touch ye!"

"Ho! ho!" cried the Twain, eating more lustily than ever. "Eat thus and harden yourselves, you poor, soft things, you!"

Just then there was a great commotion. Everyone rushed to the shelter of the walls and houses, shouting to them to leave off and follow quickly.

"What is it?" asked they, looking up and all around.

"Woe, woe! The gods are angry with us this day, and blowing arrows at us. They will kill you both! Hurry!" A big puff of wind was blowing over, scattering slivers and straws before it; that was all!

"Brother," said the elder, "this will not do. These people must be hardened and be taught to eat. But let us take a little sleep first, then we will look to this."

They propped themselves up against a wall, set their shields in front of them, and fell asleep. Not long after they awakened suddenly. Those strange people were trying to drag them out to bury them, but were afraid to touch them now, for they thought them dead stuff, more dead than alive.

The younger brother punched the elder with his elbow, and both pretended to gasp, then kept very still. The people succeeded at last in rolling them out of the court like spoiling bodies, and were about to mingle them with the refuse when they suddenly let go and set up a great wail, shouting "War! Murder!"

"How now?" cried the Twain, jumping up. Whereupon the people stared and chattered in greater fright than ever at seeing the dead seemingly come to life!

"What's the matter, you fool people?"

"Akaa kaa," cried a flock of jays.

"Hear that!" said the villagers. "Hear that, and ask what's the matter! The jays are coming; whoever they light on dies-run you two! Aii! Murder!" And they left off their standing as though chased by demons. On one or two of the hindmost some jays alighted. They fell dead as though struck by lightning!

"Why, see that!" cried the elder brother--"these people die if only birds alight on them!"

"Hold on, there!" said the younger brother. "Look here, you fearsome things!" So they pulled hairs from some scalp-locks they had, and made snares of them, and whenever the jays flew at them they caught them with the nooses until they had caught every one. Then they pinched them dead and took them into the town and roasted them. "This is the way," said they, as they ate the jays by morsels.

And the people crowded around and shouted: "Look! look! why, they eat the very enemy say nothing of refuse!" And although they dreaded the couple, they became very conciliatory and gave them a fit place to bide in.

The very next day there was another alarm. The Two ran out to learn what was the matter. For a long time they could see nothing, but at last they met some people fleeing into the town. Chasing after them was a cooking-pot with earrings of onions. It was boiling furiously and

belching forth hot wind and steam and spluttering mush in every direction. If ever so little of the mush hit the people they fell over and died.

"He!" cried the Twain;

"Té-k'ya-thla-k'ya

Í-ta-wa-k'ya

Äsh'-she-shu-kwa!

--As if food-stuff were made to make people afraid!" Whereupon they twitched the ear-rings off the pot and ate them up with all the mush that was in the pot, which they forthwith kicked to pieces vigorously.

Then the people crowded still closer around them, wondering to one another that they could vanquish all enemies by eating them with such impunity, and they begged the Twain to teach them how to do it. So they gathered a great council of the villagers, and when they found that these poor people were only half finished, . . they cut vents in them (such as were not afraid to let them) . . and made them eat solid food, by means of which they were hardened and became men of meat then and there, instead of having to get killed after the manner of the fearful, and others of their kind before time, in order to ascend to the daylight and take their places in men born of men.


And for this reason, behold! a new-born child may eat only of wind-stuff until his cord of viewless sustenance has been severed, and then only by sucking milk or soft food first and with much distress.

Behold! And we may now see why, like newborn children are the very aged; childish withal--á-ya-vwi; not only toothless, too, but also sure to die of diarrhea if they eat ever so little save the soft parts and broths of cooked food. For are not the babes new-come from the Shi-u-na world; and are not the aged about to enter the Shi-po-lo-a world, where cooked food unconsumed is never heeded by the fully dead?

Thus shortens my story.

The Shawnee Prophet - What he told the Hotcâgara
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
When the Creator fashioned the Shawnee Prophet, he made him that he might accomplish a special mission on this earth. The Creator told him all that he was to do and achieve in life. When he was born, he was one of triplets. In his youth the Devil (Herecgúnina) came to him and told him many things and led him astray, even to the point that he came to forget what the Creator had told him. The Devil claimed that he would ascend to heaven and that no one could kill him. Then the Devil gave him a medicine belt of great mystery: when he cast it upon the ground, it would turn into a rattle snake that would shake its rattle as if to strike. Under the Devil's influence he had become a bad person, and much feared by everyone. Women were always in his company, not because they loved him, but because they feared not to do his bidding. He was immensely strong and drank to excess, and if anyone attacked him when he was drunk, he would find out who they were, and beat them severely. If they resisted, he would kill them. Thus he was feared by everyone. His brother, Haga, who was the third triplet, had a very narrow head, and people constantly teased him about it. One day he announced, "I have had enough of this, and will go home." Then he died.

One night when he was drunk, the Shawnee Prophet was jumped by a group of men and nearly killed. The next morning he asked his wife who they were, and when she told him, he said, "They shall hear of me this day!" Before taking revenge, he decided to bathe. While he was bathing, a man approached him and said, "I am sent to summon you, so let us go." The man took him to Spirit-land where he saw the Creator, who asked him, "My son, I had created you for a purpose, so how fares the mission given you?" He then remembered all the Creator had said to him, all that he had since forgotten. The Creator spoke: "Did I create you thus?" Whereupon the Creator showed him his own mouth which had become twisted out of shape. Then he showed him his ears which we so warped that he did not comprehend how he could hear anything through them. "Did I create you thus?" the Creator asked. Then the Creator pulled out his heart, which was furrowed and un smooth. "Did I create you thus?" the Creator again asked. Then the Creator showed him all his evil ways, and asked, "Is this what you were created to do? But you will do better this time."

When he returned to earth he gave up thoughts of revenge, and began to teach his great mystery. Yet no one believed him. So he called a great assembly and promised to speak the truth to them. Many scoffed and said he was becoming more and more insane. He fashioned a small, flat war club and brought this with him. Now his remaining brother [Tecumseh] was himself very holy, and could not be killed even with bullets. He told his brother not to speak, but he replied, "If you can pick up this miniature club, then I shall fall silent." His brother went to lift it, but could not budge it at all. Then he invited anyone to lift it, but no one there could make it move at all. When the people saw this, they believed him.

At this time the other tribes were having their night dances, so the Hotcâgara moved nearby. The word of the Shawnee Prophet reached many, for he said, "Let the people give up the customs they now have, and I shall give them new ones." So many threw away their war-bundles and tossed out their good medicine bundles, but he had meant that they should renounce their bad customs. So a war-leader named "Smoke Walker" decided to lead some of the young men over to the Prophet's camp to see him. Then an old man named "Dog Head," who was very wákâtcâk (holy), announced that he would come along; but the leader said, "Not so -- for we shall walk as the Thunders." "If you walk as the Thunderbirds, and I cannot keep up, then I shall turn back," the old man replied. Eleven men went with Smoke Walker. When they arrived, they found people from every nation except the Hotcâgara. When the Shawnee Prophet saw them, his heart was glad, and he said to them, "My dear younger brothers, I had hoped much to see you, although I do not speak Winnebago, so I may not be able to address you." Now the leader turned to Dog Head, who in his youth could speak the languages of all the neighboring nations, and asked him to translate. Dog Head said, "I can understand him, but I do not know whether I can speak to him." "Do your best," said the leader, "for anything is better than nothing." Then Dog Head spoke to the Prophet and said he thought that he might not be understood, but the Prophet understood him and they had a long conversation: "My dear younger brothers," said the Prophet, "we are not getting along in life as we should because we have not done the right thing." Then he told the Hotcâgara all that had happened to him and how the Creator had sent him to earth to accomplish a mission. Then he instructed the people to build a long ceremonial lodge. Some were chosen to go after bears, and each one he sent forth did not fail to come back with one. Thus they believed him, and knew him to be holy.

One day the look-outs informed the Prophet that the Long Knives were advancing upon them in force. Then the Prophet told them, "Listen carefully, and when they have fallen asleep, then we will take care of them." One of the Long Knives came into camp and asked them, "Where shall we camp?" and they told him that they could camp where they were. While the Long Knives slept that night, the united tribes fell upon them, firing a hail of musket balls. The Long Knives were so surprised that many fled into the night without their muskets. The commander [General William Henry Harrison] had the bugle sounded, and the Long Knives gathered back together. Then they counterattacked and many Indians fell there [at Tippecanoe]. The Hotcâk war-leader, Smoke Walker, was one of these. The warriors were scattered as to the winds, and none knew who had lived or who had perished.

Small Snake, the son of Smoke Walker, headed back home with a boat load of women under his care. The women suddenly expressed alarm when they saw a boat full of white people coming right towards them. Small Snake had only two musket balls left, but he stood to fire. At the last moment he held back, for he recognized them: unexpectedly, they were not Long Knives, but Good Spirit People (French). They greeted one another and the French gave him plenty of ammunition. Thus they got safely home.

Since the time of the Shawnee Prophet many prophets have risen up and passed away, yet they never spoke the truth as he had. They spoke that they might be praised, or only that they might be heard. He foresaw that a woman would prophecy, but that she should immediately be slain, for she foreshadowed the end of the world. He also said that a boy would rise as a prophet and that all should give him ear. The Peyote people believe that they have realized this prophesy. The Shawnee Prophet said many other things that have come to pass. He spoke the truth when he said that the Hotcâgara would be able to write their own tongue. He said that the time would come when trees would uproot and travel about the country -- thus it is when trees have been logged and put upon trains to the mill. All this he prophesied many generations ago, and he spoke the truth like no other that has come afterwards.

The boy who was blessed by a Mountain Lion
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
Once in a village, there lived a very poor boy. His family wished to bring him up so that he would be blessed by the spirits. They made him fast and coaxed him to fast for long periods of time that he might be blessed by the great spirits and do something for his people. At first the boy thought that there was nothing in fasting, but one night, he heard a voice which said, "My grandson, try hard to dream of my brothers and myself, for if you do not pay much attention to your fasting we cannot bless you. Your people depend upon you, and that is why they have asked you to fast as long as you can. The longer you fast, the more you will be able to accomplish for yourself and for your people." Thus spoke the voice.

The next morning, he told his father that some voice had spoken to him. "It is good," said the father, "but you must get a blessing from someone who is in charge of great blessings, be he above in the sky, under the earth, or in the waters. Thus, when you get to be a man, the people will all say that you are the young man who fasted for a long time. 'He must know very much,' they will say. So blacken your face still more, my son." Then the boy took some charcoal from the fireplace and rubbed it upon his face, and then went away, taking with him his bow and arrows.

When he got to a place at some distance from the village, he said to himself, "There must be something in this preaching. I will try to dream of something. I will stay out in the wilderness and try to obtain some blessing." Thinking of these things, he wandered farther and farther away. Finally, he made a shelter for himself in a hollow log. When night came he crawled into the log backwards and stuffed the hole with dried leaves so that he would not be too cold. There he slept and the next day he got up and went hunting as usual. He shot many squirrels and birds, and when he was tired he put up a target to shoot at, just as many other boys do. When night came again, he crept into the log again and slept. This he kept up for ten days. He was tired and hungry by this time, but he said to himself, "If my ancestors would see me as I as now, tired out and hungry, they would surely bless me." Thus he thought. He tried to stand it as long as possible, and so he kept it up for another ten days. By this time he was so emaciated that he was practically only skin and bones. He could hardly walk. Then he thought to himself, "Tonight, I shall sleep out on the hill, and if I starve to death, my people, when they find my body will know that I met a good death." So there he lay and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night he awoke and felt that something was near him. He peered into the night, and there was a mountain lion sitting quite close. He got frightened at first, but he did not move, thinking to himself, "Well, if I am going to die, I might as well die now." Just then the lion spoke to him and said, "I am the cause or your being in your present condition. I made you come to this place. My brothers sent me to see you and to bless you We knew long ago that you were making yourself pitiable, but only when you became thin and indeed most pitiable, only when you remembered my brothers, did I come to you. Now I am going to tell you about some war party that you are to lead. You will kill as many people as you want to, as long as you remember to pour tobacco for my brothers and myself. We are in possession of great war-giving powers. I am in charge of the others besides and should any difficulty befall you, therefore, call my name and I will come to your aid immediately. When you kill any one, you may retain the head, but the body you must leave for us and we shall eat it. I shall stay with you all night, and tomorrow I shall go and get you something to eat." Thus the lion spoke.

Early the next morning the lion went out and killed a deer and cooked a piece of meat for the boy. "Eat and drink some soup so that you may be strong enough to go home to your parents. They are hunting for you, and are about to give up all hope of ever finding you alive. I am there every day as it is not far from here. It is just over the hill." The boy ate and then thanked the lion, saying, "Grandfather, you have conferred a great blessing upon me and what you have asked of me, I will do for you as long as I live." The lion replied, "Well, you may go hoe now, grandson. There is a man who is just about to start out on the warpath. Go along with him and do your best. Always think of me, and then I will keep my mind upon you in order to aid you."

So the boy went home, and the lion went to his home. All day and part of the night, the boy traveled, reaching his home late at night. He immediately went to his father's lodge, and there he found the old man with his head in his hands. "Father," said the boy, "It is I. I have come home. I got along very well while I was away. What you asked me to try and obtain, I did obtain and I think I have been blessed with great powers." Then the father awoke his wife and told her to prepare some food for their son as he must be hungry. He said to him, "My son, we were just about to give up searching for you, for we all thought that you were dead by this time. Really, it is good that you have succeeded so well in your fasting. In the future you will never have to worry about anything. What brave men do, that you will also be able to do, so that in years to come your people will be able to mention you whenever they recount the deeds of their famous war leaders." The old man continued, "A certain man is just about to start n the warpath, and thus, you have come just in time to go along. His folks are going to give a Winter Feast tomorrow, and the day after he will start out. He will first go through the village and all the young men who have accomplished anything, and those who have fasted, will join him. Now I shall tell your mother and sisters to get moccasins and some medicine ready for you so that you may be able to join this man."

The next morning the Winter Feast was given and the old man and his son were invited. So the two went over and the people kept on saying, "Look, there is the old man with his son whom we all thought to be dead. He must be a great person, because he has been away so long a time fasting." At the feast, the man who was going on the warpath made a speech and asked all the young men who had never had anything to do with women to join him the next morning at the break of day. They were to get together yonder at the hill and start form there. So the next morning, the young men went to the appointed hill, and when they had gathered together, they started out. They were led by a warrior. When night came they sat around the fires they had built, telling stories. On the second and third nights they did the same. On the fourth night, the leader addressed them as follows: "Young men, whatever you have dreamt of, whatever you have been blessed with, you must tell us for we are near the enemy now. I want to select those whom I wish to send out to scout the enemies' position." So all the young men told the leader of their dreams. When the boy's turn came he got up and said, "Well, when I fasted and wanted to die in the wilderness, a mountain lion came to me and said that he was the chief of the lions and that he had come to me purposely to bless me. Then he went out and killed a deer for me and cooked it and gave it to me to eat. Before leaving, he told me to go home and join this war party. The leader said, "Well, that is good." He also added, "I am going to select one person, the one that I think will make the best scout." Then he selected the boy.

Before the boy started, he poured some tobacco on the ground and asked his grandfather to bless him. Then the lion came to him again, and said, "You are to stay here, while I go forward and scout their position." So the boy stayed there and the lion growled and started forward, tearing the brush as he went. In a little while he returned to the boy and said, "Everything is well. They have no suspicion at all of your coming, so that you will be able to surprise them." Then the lion departed. When the boy got back, the leader said to hi, "What did you find out?" The boy replied, "My grandfather went to spy upon them for me and said that everything was all right, and that we would be able to surprise them." The leader said, "That is good, that is what we want. Be ready, boys, about day break, because just as our grandfather the sun makes his appearance in the sky, we shall rush upon the enemy. Each of you must try his best because we want to kill as many of the enemy as we can. I shall go ahead, and when I give a whoop then you boys can follow." But the boy snuck away and hid himself in front of the place where they were sleeping, and when the leader came past in the morning and gave the whoop, the boy ran past the leader. The leader said, "That is good, that is what I call a good warrior." The boy rushed into the midst of the enemy and killed their leader, cut off his head, and brought it to his own leader. The leader struck the head and said, "He is the one I have come after, but you killed him before I could reach him. Now I am glad that I can count the second coup." So he gave a whoop and struck the head. They fought until late in the afternoon, and then they started for home. Almost all of them carried a scalp with them. When they got home, they told how the boy had killed the leader, and had given the head to their own war leader. The boy's father was very glad.

Then the boy got married, and used to go hunting with his wife. They used to go away from home and camp out for some time. One day, when they had gone camping, he went out hunting and left his wife in the camp. In the evening when he returned, his lodge poles were standing very straight. Looking about, he found that his wife and been taken prisoner. So he said, "I shall go after my wife. I am a man, and it would be a shame for me to go back to my people without her." So he started out and soon came upon a trail. Looking carefully at it, he discovered his wife's foot prints. This made him angry and he went faster. He traveled until he came in sight of a village. There he hid himself near a spring. About dark he saw a woman coming to the spring and he recognized her as his wife. So he went up to her and said, "I love your very much, and for that reason I have come after you." The woman, however, was already married to a son of the chief of that village, and she liked her new husband, so she told him to wait there until she went back to get some moccasins. He waited there while she went back to the village. But she told her husband that her old husband had come and was at the spring. Thereupon they sent a few warriors to capture him. The warriors, coming upon him unexpectedly, captured him. They placed him in the Warrior's Lodge and guarded him there.

The next morning the son of the chief sent for him and said, "You must have been very fond of your wife to have come so long a distance to see her." The boy answered, "I always said that if ever my wife was captured, I would go and get her." The son of the chief then said, "I have a little soup on the fire for you, for you must be hungry. You are going to eat as a real man should, and when you have finished eating, we will go out into an open field and have a little fun." "So he placed the boiling kettle before him, and told him to eat the soup with his hands. The boy did it, and burned his hands until they were raw and bloody. Nevertheless, he ate all that they put before him. The old chief protested and told his son that this was not the way to make a man suffer, but the son laughed and told him that it was just in this that the fun came in. Then he took the boy to an open field and after driving stakes in the ground, tied his limbs to them. Then the chief's son and his wife got on horses and ran towards him. The horses, however, jumped over him. They kept on running their horses at him until the horses stepped on him. By evening there was nothing left of him. Then they went back the village and the chief's son said, "Why, that man did not have any blessings at all. He couldn't help himself in the least."

Sometime during the night the mountain lion was walking about, and he smelled the flesh of a human being. He went to the spot where the man had been killed, and putting his head down, he sniffed again and said, "Why this is the man I have blessed. He evidently did not think of men and hence was killed. I will try and revive him." So he licked the earth and made peculiar noises. Then the man's bones came together. When he made the noise the fourth time, the man said, "They took me unexpectedly, grandfather, so I did not have time to think of you." They sat together awhile and then they went away into the wilderness.

Then the man and the lion fasted for four years. At the end of that time the man said, "Grandfather, I am going to stop fasting. I am really blessed now, and the spirits in charge of war have given me that whole village. Now I will go to that village and no one may go with me but you." So the lion went forth and killed a deer, and the man gave a feast. Then the man went and got the deer and the lion gave the feast, and the man feasted. Then they started out for the enemy. "Grandson," said the lion, "I will kill one half of the village and you will kill the other half. They proceeded onward carrying a few scalps with them.

When the man's folks saw him coming back with a big mountain lion, they were frightened. When they reached home they went the lodge of the young man's parents, and the father asked him where his wife was. The boy replied, "The enemy took her away from me and when I went after her, they killed me. But my grandfather, whom you see here, resuscitated me. Then the two of us went and killed every person in that village. Here are a few scalps, and if any people want a few more, that can go and get them." Then the father sent a crier through the village with the news, and the people were glad. The wife's brothers came running to him and said, "Young man, you have done very well."

Then the lion said, "If I remain here, it will not be all right. Earth-Maker does not wish it to be that way, so I shall go where my brothers are." If he had remained, he and the man would have killed all the people, and as the lion knew this, he went away. This is the story of how the lion blessed the human being, and then later took his blessing away because Earth-Maker did not like it.

Black and White Moons
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
In the time of beginnings, the good spirits and the evil spirits met in council to determine how the world should be divided between them. First they took up the question of how many moons there should be from one winter to the next. Wild Turkey (Zizikega) strutted before them and spread his tail feathers, declaring, "Let a year be as many moons a there are spots on my tail." But the council of spirits voted this down, as there were far too many spots on his tail. Partridge also suggested that there should be as many moons in a year as there were spots on his tail, but the spirits felt that it was also too long a time. Then Chipmunk (Hetcgenîka) scampered up throwing its tail over its head as chipmunks always do, and said, "Let a year be as many moons are there are black and white stripes down my back." The counselors thought well of this suggestion, and allowed that the six black stripes would be the summer moons, and the six white stripes would be the moons of winter.

The evil spirits are greedy, however. They always wish for darkness, so when they saw the bright white disc of the moon and how it lit up the world, they began to eat the Night Luminary away until nothing was left of it. But Earthmaker was not content to see his creation consumed, leaving a dark world as a cover for evil, so he recreated the moon a little each night until at the end of fourteen nights it was full again. Then Earthmaker rested. While the Creator took leave, the evil spirits again gnawed away at the moon until it was completely consumed. And so it continues, with Earthmaker ever renewing the moon and his enemies forever eating it away.

A Snake song origin myth
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
This story is told during the Medicine Rite by the spirit-impersonator of the north.

"Ancestors, we send forth our greetings to you. I possess a Snake Song, one that has come down to me and one that I could use, so they told me, whenever I wished to give a life-engendering greeting. This song was obtained from a large yellow snake by a person who had been blessed under the fork of a tree where there was a crow's nest. With a large portion of life was he blessed, with herbs and grasses, beneficent grasses, those that would restore health to a man. Yet, nevertheless, some of them, it is said could cause a person to become weak. All these plants were to bring prestige and honor to the possessor.

Now, in the beginning, people associated with these plants just as if they possessed life like ourselves. They were worshipped and honored. Not today do we do so. Yet these herbs and grasses are still being used and are still efficacious.

This Snake Song I shall now sing. Ancestors, we greet you, we greet you!"

[The Snake Song was omitted in the source.]

The Lost Child
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
Once in the fall of the year, a Winnebago with his family camped there, near a spring which issues from the foot of the bluff, to have his winter hunt. While the man was out hunting, his wife would go and dig some of the Indian potatoes (wâkciktora) from the margin of the spring. She took along her little daughter, who was about four years of age, and having dug some of the roots, left the child to watch them, and went further to dig more. While away she heard the girl give one scream; but when she had hurried back no child was to be seen; nor would she find her with all the search and callings she made. When the man returned he endeavored to find her, but with no better success. The next fall, the man and family camped at the same place again. The woman had dreamt during the summer that the child would be returned to her. One day, a clear fine day, she took her axe, and went to the same place where she had lost the child.

She saw her there, and went up to her, but there was such an odor or scent from the child that it overcame the mother and she fainted. The child restored the mother, and then the mother picked the child up, and carried her to the lodge, where her husband was. The child observed that if the odor which she had, which arose from her association with the Wak'tcexi (Water Spirit) was disagreeable, she would go back.

She related that she had heard her mother and father crying for her the whole winter; that she could not come to them because she did not know the way; and besides, her new mother, the Wak'tcexiwîka, would not let her go; but as they had cried so much and made so much sacrifice to the Wak'tcexi, they had consented to send her back to live with her folks until they wanted her again. While with her new mother, she was well dressed and wore plenty of wampum (a child's and young Indian's supreme ambition).

When her new mother sent her back, she sent her with the same clothes she had on when she was taken; but had tied around her neck a small sea shell as a charm. The new mother told her that as long as she preserved that shell, she would want for nothing -- all her wishes should be gratified. So she stayed with her earthly parents, the strong Wak'tcexi's odor passing away.

A wife for knowledge
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
Once there was a man who was very powerful and respected among the people. He was a member of the Medicine Rite. This man had only one son, and because the boy had no brothers, he knew very little. In the course of time, the father began to give his son presents. He put a kettle on the fire for him, and told him to be brave and to be a real warrior. The son wondered to himself why he was giving him gifts and advice. The father kept giving his son gifts, and eventually he gave him a fine horse and told him, "My dear son, in order to be a warrior, there are certain things you must know." Then his son understood what he meant.

In the course of time the young man married a beautiful woman with red hair who came from another tribe. His father was smitten by her beauty and cast longing eyes upon her. His son did not fail to notice it. So the son gave his father this woman. The old man was very grateful and said, "How can I ever repay you, you have made my heart glad." So the father gave his son all the knowledge that he possessed.

In time the red haired woman sicked and died. The old man made a bowl of her skull and then composed a song which is used to this day in the Medicine Rite.

Bear Clan origin myth
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
There exist several versions of the Bear Clan Origin Myth:

Version 1.
The spirits met at a long lodge in the East to discuss populating the Earth. Earthmaker wished to put a particular Bear on Earth, but it was already headed that way on its own initiative. When the Bear appeared, the winds stopped and the day stood still. As the Bear walked towards the Creation Council, a great nimbus of lightning formed over his head. Before the lodge of the council stood a sapling. Unexpectedly, a storm suddenly struck out of nowhere, and a great lightning bolt consumed the tree. There stood the Bear, and beside him materialized the Spirit of War (Wonághire Uánkcik?). They greeted each other as friends. This is why Bear clansmen have two sides to their bodies: one is the repository of war powers and the other is the dwelling place of the powers of chieftainship. The Bear clansmen from the beginning walked on two legs, but initially they were completely covered with fur. In time, as they traversed the Earth, they lost their fur. Those with whom they traveled would kill and eat a Bear from time to time, but the Bear people would always abstain. However, one day a Bear clansman joined in the feast. When this was reported to the Bear Chief, he declared for all time that because "we have eaten ourselves," the Bear Clan shall henceforth participate with the other clans in feasts.

Version 2.
There were four spirit Bears the youngest of whom came walking across the ocean. When he got near the shore he suddenly turned into a raven and flew onto the littoral. Because he became a raven, the Bear Clan now has the name Kakijigaga, (kaghi - "raven"). Some say that it was in the form of foam that he came to shore and that is why the Bear clansmen have so much life. Then he changed back, and because he changed twice he is one of the greatest of the Bear people. When he walked on the shore at Red Banks he first saw a Wolf clansman and they went together to a lodge each of whose four doors opened onto one of the cardinal points. When they entered the lodge they sat opposite one another. This is why they are friends and call each other, "my opposite."

Version 3.
Ten brothers left their parents and walked across the ocean, headed for the great clan meeting at Red Banks. As they approached the shore, four waves were formed and out of each wave a raven (kaghi) flew up. When the ravens landed on the shore, suddenly they each became a Bear. Those four, because they had changed themselves twice, were the most powerful. As they walked along they saw the tracks of the Wolf clansmen, so they said, "Our friends have gone by." When they went into the assembly lodge, they sat opposite the Wolf people. This is why the Wolf and Bear Clans bury each other. Bear people should paint their faces with red and black pigments. The charcoal should be from the basswood tree. They should paint the women with red on their cheeks and place a black mark in the center of each cheek.

Version 4.
In the beginning there were no humans since Earthmaker had created only animals. In a great council held with all the animals, Earthmaker announced that some of them would be chosen to become human. It was decided that one animal of each of twelve kinds was to be chosen along with his wife. When it came time to name the Soldier, he picked the youngest of the Bears. This Bear's oldest brother has black hair, the second oldest is dark red, and the third of the brothers has blue (tco) hair. Each was a chief in his spirit village. Then, on the appointed day, the youngest Bear and his wife emerged out of the Earth to the North of Green Bay. It was a perfect day. As they went to the place of rendezvous, they heard them say in the distance, "Here come the Soldiers!" With each step they made footprints of luminescent blue like Daylight itself. Thus they have a name, Hâbamanina, "He Who Walks with the Day." As they walked, those who followed him became hungry, so he told them that they could hunt. Now he sent those hunters ahead so that they might have just the right food waiting for them when they camped. That night they made offerings of this food along with red feathers and tobacco for the three brothers that he left behind. He did this because they asked to be remembered of him. When they started again the next day they saw tracks on the ground, and said, "Our friends must have come by." When their friends saw the tracks of the Soldiers, they said the same thing. The Soldiers arrived at last at a great lodge where they met the other chosen animals. They wished to start a fire, but none of them save the Thunder Clan could make one, so that clan was made chief. They called upon the Waterspirits to be chief of the lower division; of the third division, the Soldiers were to be chiefs. They were in charge of discipline. This is the origin of the Bear Clan, who are Soldiers.

Version 5.
After he created all other things, Earthmaker created a man and woman in the South, and he appointed them to be in charge of part of the Day (that is, Life). To the man, he gave charge of all the creatures upon the Earth and in the sky. This man came North from below, and as he came forth a great host of creatures followed after him. The other clans had already gathered at the place of rendezvous, and when they saw them come, they said, "Make room! Our Soldiers have arrived." Then the Soldier spoke to them and said, "What Earthmaker created me for, I am here to do. I will protect and make sacred all the cleared land upon which your village stands; and if you call upon your Soldiers to combat sickness, you shall be made well." For four days the weather was good and no wind blew from any direction. In such wise was the Soldier in charge of things and circling above him were birds of prey sharp in their talons. After four days the clans left for their homes. To this day the Bear is still in command of the people.

Version 6.
There was a hill in the South near a spring of white water. The hill and the waters shook mightily and he who lived in the hill came forth preceded by his attendants. There were eleven men there, and they told him to look about the fields and meadows. So he sent four of his attendants and there they found ripened fruit in abundance, even nuts and beans. However, they returned and excitedly reported to the leader, "Unexpectedly, we came across the footprints of human beings." So the leader told them to make a wider circuit in their explorations and when they did so, they soon found those they sought. It had been the Wolves who made the footprints, and being thus discovered, they said, "It is our friends who have come upon us." The Bears replied, "Friends, let us never disobey one another's words," and for their part the Wolves declared, "It shall always be thus." And they pledged to one another that when anyone among them should die, his opposite would put him in the Earth so that his soul would not be set upon by evil spirit insects. Thus the Bears and Wolves are friends, and even avenge the murder of one another's clansmen. After shaking hands, the Wolves departed to their home, and the Bears returned South. When the Bears came back to this Earth again, they spread out all over the land seeking every kind of ripe fruit. Thus they do to this day.

Version 7.
Hotcâk-English Interlinear Text

Earthmaker he made it (the cosmos). Thus it was taught that Earthmaker did in this way, and so the story began. The story has reached us. Also in this way he made us, and so the story began. "We are to get ready to counsel together." It was the one on the side where it grows cold (the North) who said it. He was one whom the Creator also created in the way he created us. There were four brothers, the eldest was named "Black"; the second, "Red," as he was a red one; the third was a blue/green (tco) one; the fourth, who was the youngest and last, was a white one.

"Our younger brother, how will it be?" This one (said), "I myself say that I am not equal to the task, thus do I believe. My temperament does not approach being equal to the task. Try to say something, as they are about to have a gathering. Try to say something." And, "O elder brother, you have spoken truly, and I too am thus. There I am not equal to the task of finishing this, my dear elder brother, I am not fit." "Alright, our dear elder brother, you have told us to finish this, but for this sort of thing I am not equal to the task; only our younger brother, he alone is clever, our dear elder brother, I believe that it is only our younger brother who is the one." "Alright, our younger brother, he will be the one. Truly have you spoken, our younger brother alone is fit for the task. The announcement of the coming gathering has already been made. We shall council over it right away, in our younger brother we will find refuge, only our younger brother, he alone will be strong in his mind." "Truly you have spoken. He will go on to the Earth, but we will be obliged to remain here and take care of our home. The younger brother, when he speaks, that way is how it will be. Thus it will be. Earthmaker ordained that they should gather together and the lives that we have shall be lived there. Our younger brother will do it. Younger brother, you will be going, so we will ask you to remember us. When you arrive on Earth, you will be going along and if you obtain one of the little offerings, send some back to us. When you start out going, you will go in the guise of Light-and-Life (Hâpdjâre). Now it is his [to do]. You have companions. You have those who travel. You will do it. You will take care to name everyone who is now with you. And when you start going out, after you have arrived at the gathering place, you will name the dog names. Now you will go forth in holiness (wákâtcâk)." And he was the last to start.

"This one, the first one, his name this will be it: the name for the oldest, the first, if he is a man, a male, they will call him by the name, 'Very Black', they will address him. And they will call the second one 'Yellowish Red.' The name of the fourth oldest they shall call 'White Bear.' When there is a girl, they call her by the name, 'She who Walks in Darkness.' And the next one they call 'Daylight as She Walks.' And the next one they call 'She who Thrusts Herself within a Lodge.' And the next one they call 'Visible Footprint Woman,' they call her. And again, in owning a dog, if they wish to keep him, they call him 'Bringer of Fresh Meat.' Yet again, one they style 'Two Bears,' they call him, if they keep him. And again when doing it for a female dog, they style her 'Haksiga (Third Born Female),' they call her. Yet again, a *****, once they decide to keep it, they style it 'Yellowish Red Female,' they call it, and in this way they will do it," he said.

They started to go to the gathering place. They began to talk. They [at the gathering place] heard them: "Our soldiers are coming. Their speech is audible." In time one landed with a leap. "Our friends have arrived," they said. And they arrived. They arrived at the gathering place. When he got there, they arrived. The Waterspirit Clan had arrived first; the Bird Clan had arrived; the Bear Clan had arrived; the whole group of relatives gathered together, and they made a lodge. They made a great lodge. They finished the lodge and they said -- to those who were first to arrive, the Waterspirit Clan -- they were addressed, "Chief among our kin, how will we proceed? Try to light a fire!" "Hoho, hoho, hagagasgejâ, I cannot do it. I am unable. One among us will do it." They were told that he could not do it. They said, "The one who could start the fire, that one would become chief." Thus they said. They tried to do it. The Thunderbird Clan of the Bird Clan, they could do it. They said that they could start the fire, and so they are the chief. They became glad and the relatives distributed the fire around. And everyone placed the fire it is said. Thus it was at the Creation Council. Everything they were to create, they got done. They were to (ritually) serve the village. The Thunderbird Clan, it was put in charge of the village. They made for him a lodge, they put him in charge, and they obeyed whatever he would say. They said of him, "By this means we got here," they would say to him, and thus they would obey their chief and [this is why] they said it.

When they were to eat, whatever food they brought back, they would look for it themselves. They say that they began to take the food back with them, and the Bear Clan made a rule for themselves: it would make for itself a feast as an offering. For him they give just one kettle, it is a shallow kettle, they say.

Version 8.
It is told that at a large spring there suddenly appeared a Bear whose body was sky-blue and so bright that it seemed like part of the sky itself. This was Blue Bear, and Earthmaker brought him there for a special purpose. Standing to the side of Blue Bear were twelve men. Then, unexpectedly, four times the Earth shook, and each time a great spirit being came up from the Earth. When the third of these emerged, the Earth erupted in fruit of every kind and in plenty it was spread over the Earth. And Earthmaker told Blue Bear that he, and all who were with him, were to go to a gathering at Red Banks. As they tread the Earth, it shook, and the leaves with spiny edges changed to men, and so too the thorns and briars, the serpents with sharp fangs, and the birds of prey with the sharp talons -- all these became men under the charge of Blue Bear. When they arrived, they found that a place had already been prepared for them, but they did not tarry there long. Blue Bear announced that Earthmaker had made these men to be spiritual guardians to ward off evil from the Hotcâgara, for they were all soldiers among the living things of this world. When this was made known, everyone dispersed to their homes, but those who remained behind as men became the Hotcâk Soldier (Bear) Clan.

The Spider's Eye
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
When Earth-Maker had completed his creation of the world, he looked for a creature that could watch over his creation. First Earthmaker appointed Turtle to oversee things, but his legs were so stubby that he could not see very far at all. So he was recalled. Then Earth-Maker appointed Kaghiga (Crow/Raven) to oversee the world. Kaghiga could see far and wide, but he did more than just watch: he gave orders to everyone, and never was he silent for even a moment. Thus Earthmaker recalled Kaghiga. Then Earthmaker appointed Bear. Bear could stand on his hind legs and see well and could even climb trees so that he could see in every direction. However, Bear had a terrible temper, and soon frightened the whole of creation. So Earthmaker recalled him as well.

Then Earthmaker appointed Spider to watch over the world. Spider was without any passion, so no one feared her. Her voice was so small that only Earthmaker himself could hear her. Because she could climb, Spider was able to see far and wide. In the beginning, Spider had only two eyes like everyone else, but just to make sure that she could see everywhere, Earthmaker gave her six new eyes, one eye for each direction. Ever since, spiders have had eight eyes.

The woman who fought the Bear
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
There once was a band of people who were always giving Bear Feasts and came to be blessed by a great Bear Spirit. One member of the band fasted very hard, and made himself very pitiable. Finally, he dreamed and was blessed by a Bear Spirit. The spirit came before him and said, "Human! I bless you with war powers: on your first warpath you shall gain the fourth war honor; on your second, you shall have the third war honor; on your third warpath, you shall achieve the second war honor; and on the fourth warpath you shall achieve the first war honor, and your sisters shall parade through the village with the prize!" He was overjoyed to hear this, but there were yet more blessings. The spirit continued: "Human! I bless you with life: for as long as the Creator gave you to live, that long shall you live; I bless you with the full extent of life given to you. Human! I also bless you with my body: if you pour me a pipe full of tobacco, then you shall not fail to kill a bear on your hunt. Do not abuse the bears, and you shall never want for food. Human! I really bless you. Never before have I blessed anyone in all the eons that I have lain here. As long as your posterity lasts on this earth, that long have you dreamt for them. If they keep up the feasts well, I shall extend to them the same blessings of war and life; and if they offer me tobacco, I shall not fail to accept it. If they offer me a kettle at the feast, I shall accept it with thanks. This single thing I warn you against: if you offer me food or tobacco you must at all costs keep it away from unclean women. It is I, the Chief of Bears, who have blessed you."

Ever since then when the First Bear Moon becomes visible, they would always give a Bear Feast. They would use no meat, but only the produce of the earth. They would always try to obtain the Bear Chief's favorite foods, which he said were maple sugar and blueberries. They would boil in the kettle dried corn and ground green corn, which they would mix with fruit and ground sugar. The feast was held in the dark of night. When all this was accomplished, the host sent his attendant around to invite the guests. When the lodge was filled to capacity, the host arose and said, "Relatives, take a seat here! Greetings to you all! It is not of our own devising that we offer tobacco to the spirits -- this knowledge came to my grandfather from Black Fur (Hîsepga), Chief of the Bears, when he blessed him. Thus we offer a kettle to him. And we make this request: should war come to us may we come away with honors. We also ask for life, as this is what our grandfather dreamt for us, it is said. Thus we give him a pipe full of tobacco, two kettles of food, and some tree sap. Then we shall eat." After the attendant filled everyone's plate, the host arose again and spoke: "Relatives! When the plates are filled, it is time to eat; but do not eat with your right hands." Then the fires were put out, and everyone ate with their left hand in pitch darkness. Another feast just like this one was given in the spring as well.

The following year, the host set aside some choice dried corn so that it could be offered to Black Fur when the Bear Moon first appeared in the sky. This corn was special to him, and he took care that no one would touch it, for he knew that the Bear Spirit was anxious to have it. It chanced that his two unmarried girls had their menstrual periods, and went to the seclusion hut to fast. After the first day of their fast, they were anxious to eat, but as no other food could be found, their mother boiled some of the sacred corn for them, even though they were not clean.

One day their mother was out with her stick tanning a hide near a spring that emerged from blue earth. There her two girls were also. Then, unexpectedly, out of the spring came a powerful bear, and it fell upon the girls and tried to kill them. The mother took her stick and kept stabbing the bear with it, but he paid no attention to her. He just kept attacking the two girls who had defiled the feast. Finally, he killed both the girls, but their mother also stabbed him to death. The bear was covered with blue clay (mâ tco), and they say that it was not an earthly bear, but a Spirit Bear, that came to punish the two girls for eating the feast corn unclean.

Ever since that day, this band has never given another Bear Feast.

The orphan who was blessed with a Horse
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
There in a village lived an orphan with his grandmother. Everyone called him Wainânîka, which means "Little Orphan." The other children when they saw him would tease him by saying, O wainânîka ixâjirena, "Oh, the little orphan is going by again." Nevertheless, he was a good child and always did what his grandmother asked him. So one day his grandmother told him it was time for him to fast and to seek a dream from the spirits, so the orphan blackened his face and went out to the wilderness to make himself pitiable before the spirits. Night after night the orphan would return home, and every time his grandmother would ask, "Did you dream and receive a blessing, grandson?" Even though four times he fasted four days and nights, and nearly fasted himself to death, he did not receive a blessing from the spirits. Indeed, he never received one.

In time he reached the age when he would be expected to go out on the warpath, so he went out to fast again. He felt discouraged and thought that the spirits denied him blessings because they were so much like humans that they felt towards him the same way that the villagers did. Nevertheless, he went to the wilderness and cried out to the Thunders that they might take pity on him and bless him. For four days and four nights he ate and drank nothing, indeed he did not even put so much as a pebble in his mouth; but on the fifth day he was so thirsty that he broke his fast to take a drink. As the orphan neared the spring he saw something. There, unexpectedly, was a dirty, emaciated horse laying in the mud. He had always desired a horse, but his grandmother was too poor to own one. When Little Orphan saw the horse he took pity on it. He fetched water for its parched lips, and rich green grass to sate its hunger. He brushed the dirt from its hide and kept bringing armfuls of grass so that he would have plenty to eat. Then he promised the horse that he would soon return after he had seen his grandmother.

When he arrived at his grandmother's, she asked, "Grandson, did you dream?" Again he had to answer "No," but he added, "I found a horse lying by the spring." He told her how he had almost fasted to death, and how he had sought the blessings of the Thunderbirds; but that on the fifth day he had to seek water, and that was how he found the horse. His grandmother told him that he should always help those who cannot help themselves, so he returned every day and supplied the horse with water and feed, nursing him back to health. Finally, he was able to lead the horse back to his lodge. When some people saw him leading this bag of bones home, they mocked him and said, "Now Little Orphan owns a horse!" The boy tried with all his power to fatten the horse up, but no matter how much grass he gathered, the horse always seemed ugly, and so bony that it looked as if his skeleton would pierce right through his skin.

At this time a number of men had gone out on a hunting expedition, and now they returned with the news that a great herd of buffalo was headed their way and would be there in about four nights. Scouts were sent out to find a good place to hunt the buffalo herd, and when they came back they had unexpected news: among the herd was a buffalo whose hide was as white as snow. It was very holy. The chief greatly coveted the hide of this animal, and had his criers announce that whoever could bring him that hide would receive his daughter's hand in marriage. The orphan greatly loved the yûgiwi (princess), and she in turn had not failed to notice him. The orphan went home and told his grandmother everything. He declared that he too would try to kill the white buffalo.

The hunters decided to wait until the buffalo were just one night's travel away, then they would launch their expedition. The boy decided to take his new found horse on the hunt with him. The next day he led his horse to water as usual, then he took him to green pastures. All the while the orphan seemed quiet and contemplative. As they were walking along, unexpectedly, he heard a voice nearby say quite distinctly, "Well nephew, why are you so quiet?" It seemed as if the voice had come from the horse, but he could not believe that such a thing was possible. Just the same, the boy decided to answer the question in order to find out where the voice was really coming from. "I was thinking about the hunt and how hard it will be to get the white buffalo. Indeed, it will be very difficult." Then the voice was heard again. "Nephew, if that is what you want, then we shall get it." Then he knew it. The voice was indeed that of the horse, and he thought to himself, "This horse is truly wákâtcâk (holy)." The boy now looked for particularly good pasture, as they would be going on the hunt the next day. As they were heading back to his grandmother's lodge, the horse said, "Nephew, what you have heard only you have heard and no one else, so do not speak of it." The orphan replied, "All right."

The next morning he went to where the men had gathered for the hunt. There they waited for the Bear Clan to give the order for the hunt to begin. Then the horse said to him, "Nephew, now you may get on me, but be sure to sit tight, and whatever happens, remain seated as you are." The Bear clansmen gave the signal for the hunt to begin, and everyone galloped off on their horses. No one paid much attention to the orphan, but when the signal had been given, his horse seemed to disappear. As the hunters finally began to get near the great buffalo herd, there, unexpectedly, to their great astonishment, was the orphan riding back. In his hand was the hide of the white buffalo. Thus the orphan won the prize of the princess. Great was the rejoicing of the village, for many buffalo were killed and there was meat aplenty.

Then the boy went to his horse and asked him, "Uncle, who are you?" The horse replied, "Hoho, nephew, you nearly fasted to death and we knew it. We took pity on you, and I came as a blessing to you. This very day at sunset I shall depart; but look in the direction of the setting sun and it shall be made known to you who I am." Thus did the horse speak, then he vanished.

That day near sunset he saw a black cloud form, its edges reddened by the setting sun. The cloud grew and grew, and soon a tremendous thunder storm swept over the land. And the people became alarmed, so intense was it. Lightning flashed with the voice of the Thunders. The sky was now black with clouds, and as Little Orphan looked to the west, he saw a great white horse race across the sky, lightning flashing from his eyes. Then he knew it, that the Thunderbirds had indeed blessed him.

A man and his three dogs
A Winnebago (Hotcâk) Legend
This story tells of a certain village where there lived a family of three: a man, his wife, and his mother-in-law. The man had three dogs: a hound, a white dog, and a rat dog. He was very fond of these dogs and used to cut up their meat before he prepared his own. The white dog used to accompany him on the hunt, while the two others stayed at home near the camp. The man was a good hunter, and lived at some distance from the village because he depended for his hunting on a blessing he had received. This year to his surprise he seemed able to kill nothing but a few small animals. He went out, nevertheless, every morning. His family was at the point of starvation. So he knew that something was wrong and he used to wonder and ponder over the cause. His dog, likewise, could not find anything, although in former years, he had always been able to find bear caves and to locate deer, elk, etc.

One night, after they had all gone to bad, the man lay awake thinking of something. Suddenly he heard the dogs talking to one another. The old hound was asking the other one whether they could not help their master. "I used to be able to help him, when I was young. But now I am old, and our little brother is too young. All that he can do is to play about the camp. So you, who are the second one, are really the only one that can be of any help," So spoke the old hound to the white dog. He answered, "I could have helped our master all this time, but there is a reason why I have not helped him." "What is the reason?" asked the old hound. "Well," answered the white dog, "the old woman, his mother-in-law, once took [a poker?] and struck me across the back with it, hitting my medicine bag. This made my heart very sad and that is the reason that our master has no success in hunting. I see bears and deer every day, when I am out, but I do not show them to him. I like the master and his wife, but I do not like his mother-in-law. However, if he were to cut the deer lung that hangs in his lodge and give it to us, I would show him a place where there are many bear caves. There is one right near here and there are many not far from here." Thus the white dog spoke.

The man had never before been able to understand the dogs but now he was able to talk to them. So in the morning when he got up he took the deer lung and cut it in three parts. His wife noticed this and asked him what he was doing. He answered that he was going to feed his dogs, and she said nothing more. He went and fed his dogs, and they were delighted. Then he took his bow and arrow and went hunting. His dog went along, and as in the olden times, before he had lost sight of his camping place the dog scared up a bear and the man killed it. From that day on he killed a bear or a deer every day. In a short time they were all provided with provisions again.

One night he told his wife what the dogs had said and how they had provided for him, so from that day on they took even better care of them. Some time passed in this manner and one night, when he was again awake he heard the dogs talking. They were saying that he was in the midst of a large body of his enemies and that there was no possible manner by which he could escape. When he heard this he got up and called his dogs into the lodge and fed them. When they had finished eating, the old hound said, "Brother, you have always treated us nicely in the past and you even fed us before you fed yourself. We always tried to help you, but now we are in a great quandary as to what to do, for you are going to have a hard time. We were just talking about this. Our little brother is, of course, of no consequence because he is too young, while I am too old to do anything but lie around the house. So it is really up to our second brother, the white dog to try and help you. He is the only one that can help you, and he has consented to try and help both you and your wife in the coming warfare." He continued, "It is said that one of the (spirit) chiefs has given you away as a victim to the one who is leading the war party. That is why all this has been kept away from you. This war leader fasted more than you did and that is why he is coming after you and why you didn't know about it. We know of it, however, for my brother has seen them today. He is going to take your wife half way back to her folks, and then he will come back and help you fight the enemy. We two, who are good for nothing will stay near the camp and help you in whatever way that we can. My younger brother will now tell you that he knows about it." Then the white dog spoke to the man and said, "Brother, you have always treated me nicely, so I am going to save you and your wife. The enemy are now circling the camp and when the sun comes up, they are going to attack you from all sides. I went out to get as much information as possible and I heard this war leader say this. Now you must understand what I am going to do. I shall escort your wife as far as I can and then she must hurry to her people and tell them to come to your assistance. The white dog continued, "If her relatives reach us early in the afternoon, they will still find us alive and fighting, but if they come later than that, it will be all over. Therefore, she must tell them to hurry up." He then got the woman and told her to take a hold of his tail, and to crawl when he crouched, and to raise herself when he did, but under no circumstance to let go of his tail. This she did, and in this way he got her to the place he had spoken of. Then he told her to run as fast as she could with her message.

In the meantime the man was getting ready for the attack. He fixed himself up for warfare, straightened his arrows, drew his bowstring tighter, and painted his face, as he always did when he prepared to go on the warpath. Then he said to the dog, "How do I look, brother?" and the dog said, "You look as if it were impossible to kill you." Then the man laughed and said, "It is good." He sat there thinking of the fight before him. He had confidence in the outcome because his brother, the dog, was going to fight with him, even though he knew that the number of the attacking party was very large. After a time the white dog came back and told the man that the only way to fight the enemy was to take turns in fighting them. As soon as they approached, the man was to fight them and when he was tired, the dog would relieve him, and so on. When things were very bad they were to retreat to the lodge and fight in the same manner. "We may be able to resist them until our friends come to our aid, and in any case they will not be able to kill us right away, because my brothers are going to concentrate their minds on us." Thus spoke the white dog, and continued," I, myself, am the chief of the wolves. I tried to become a human being like you, but I only succeeded in changing myself into an ordinary dog. I am in possession of a considerable amount of war blessings."

It was now dawn, and the enemy gave the war whoop and rushed for the man. The man, however, also gave the war whoop and rushed out with his dogs to meet them. He drove them back a ways, and then he ran back to the lodge. Then Wolf ran out to attack them. He made a great deal of noise and jumped at them, trying to tear their scrotums. Both the man and the dog, in this manner, killed many of the enemy. Thus they fought for a long time, and when the sun began to go towards the west, their friends came up and the fighting continued. Finally, both the man and the dog fell down exhausted, but some friends carried them away in blankets. While the fighting continued, the man regained consciousness, but the wolf lay unconscious for four days. His white coat was red with the blood of human beings. Finally he, too, regained consciousness, and said to the man, "Brother, I have done wrong. My coat is covered with the blood of human beings and it will never be white again. I know that he who is in control of wars will not like this at all. From now on the people will call me "the red wolf," and as the years roll on they will tell of my conduct. You yourself are a human and will remain here, but I shall go where Earth-maker has placed me."

So this is the story of how a wolf tried to become a human being, and how he only succeeded in changing himself into an ordinary dog. He did something that was entirely wrong, and therefore left us humans. The man in this story had treated him nicely so he blessed him and saved him and his wife.