Page:Kutenai Tales.djvu/90

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Boas]
Kutenai Tales
75

down. When Raven put his nose there, | then it reached the ground. When they were going to start, | Wolverene said: "Wait for me. It will take me two days || to put away my things. It will take me 20 two days." He was still | putting away his things when they started. Then Wolverene became angry | because he was left. When they had gone up, he took hold of (the arrows) and | tore them down entirely. They all dropped down. Then the women became angry | at him because they were left alone in the town. They pursued Wolverene, || and he was about to be killed. They pursued 25 Wolverene, and he was out of breath. | He took up his sinews and cut himself to pieces. He changed himself | into a squirrel. He put it under the belt which was | around his waist. Then he went back somewhere, because he could do no more, | being tired. He went around, and some one said: "Here || is Wolverene." He said: "I am 30 not he; I am called | He-who-wants-to-act-differently-from-others-and-who-does-not-care-for-whatever-may-be-done. | I am shooting squirrels."

Now, Muskrat, who had gone up, | started and made a large lake. | He built tents for himself, many tents, although he was only one. || There was a village. Then the people reached the village. They | 35 began to make war. They tore up the tents. When the first one was broken up, | a left-handed man was seen to come out. | They shot (?) him in the stomach. Then, when they tore up another | tent, he came out again in the same clothing that he had worn before. || His tent was broken, and that left-handed man | was shot (?). 40 Then they began to speak, and some one said: "Maybe | he is always the same one." Then it came to be known that he was always the same one; namely, Muskrat. | Some one said: "Stop shooting him—shooting at his stomach." | Then they left him.

Then they started back || to the place where they had come from. 45 There was nothing. (The arrow chain) was broken down. | The manitous did not know how to get down. | The war chief said: "We will wait | at the drinking-place of Thunderbird." They waited for the Thunderbird and | killed him. Then his feathers were taken off. || Then they gave them to every one to be their feathers. | There were 50 two friends, the Bats; and there were | two friends, Golden Eagle and Young Golden Eagle—two of them. Then the good | feathers were laid aside. Some one said: "Don't touch | them, they are for the friends." The Bat friends || nudged each other. They thought they 55 were meant. Then | all the feathers were given out. Then the | two chief friends were given feathers. They went back to | the place where they had come up, and they began to fly down. When the Bat | friends were given feathers, they passed them on. || They thought 60 (the best ones) would be theirs. When (all the feathers) were gone, | they knew they were mistaken. There was nothing for them.