Page:Kutenai Tales.djvu/78

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been validated.
BOAS]
KUTENAI TALES
63

doing this to me! You can not kill me.” | The Bull said: “Well, I’ll let you go.” | Coyote was told: “Now, come!” Then Coyote went near him. |

Coyote said: “I’ll fill my pipe. || We will smoke.” The Bull said: “It is well. Let us | smoke. What shall we smoke?” Coyote said: | “Let us smoke block tobacco.” The Bull said: | “I don’t smoke block tobacco.” Coyote said: | “What do you smoke?”—“I smoke leaf tobacco.” || Coyote said: “It is well. | Let us smoke it. I have some.” Then he | filled his pipe. Then they smoked. Coyote said: “It will be this way | in later times, when there will be many people. When they are angry at one another, | they will smoke to make their hearts (feel) good.”

The Bull said: || “It is well. I’ll tell you what happened to me. | On this road, at the same place where my head lay, | my wife was taken away from me. I had two wives. When I went for my wives, | I came with them to this place. Then people came here, and | I was killed.” Coyote said: “Now you will be || my friend. We shall get back your wives.” Coyote looked | at the horns of his friend. The points were broken off. He took | his knife and sharpened them. Their points were sharpened again.

He said to him: | “Now let us go.” Then the two friends went along. | They saw tents, and Coyote said to his friend: || “I’ll stay here. Go on, go and get your wives back.” | Then the Bull went to get back his wives. He took them back. | They made war on him. The Bull went back to where Coyote was staying. | Then Coyote arose. He saw his friend coming. | Then Coyote attacked the people. || They saw there were two—the Bull and Coyote. They were afraid of them, and | they left them. Then the friends went along. They were four— | two men and two women. They stopped there. The Bull spoke, | and said to Coyote: “Look at these my two wives! | Which one do you want to take? She shall be your wife.” || Coyote looked at her. He thought: “This younger one | must have strong bones. The big one must be good. | I think I will take her. She must be good.” He said to the Bull: “I | take this one.” They said to each other: “We will part now.” | They shook hands and said good-by. Then they parted. ||

Coyote and his wife went off. He saw a mountain in front. | He said to his wife: “That place looks like a valley. Go there, | I shall go roundabout.” The Buffalo Cow went on. | Coyote went another way. He went quickly. He came back quickly | to the place where his wife was going. He arrived and sat down. || After a short time the Cow arrived. Coyote thought: | “I will shoot her.