March, 1905. The Traditions of the Hopi — Voth. 197 



said, "on your account my children will have something to eat." 

 Then the Coyote took the rabbit in his mouth and ran home with it, 

 being very happy. When he arrived in his home the little Coyotes 

 wrangled over the rabbit, tore it to pieces and devoured it, some of 

 them getting something, others not, so they remained hungry. 



The next morning both the Coyote and his wife went out in search 

 of food again, the latter ascending up to the village, and ran past the 

 village on the west side, then by the north side, turning northward 

 over the mesas. Not finding anything, she finally entered the woods 

 north of the village. All at once she heard something in the trees, 

 and, looking up, she saw some Blue Jays in the tree. The Blue Jays 

 were dancing in the tree and she coveted them. They said to the 

 Coyote: "We are having a dance here, you come and be with us and 

 assist us." "I would like to," the Coyote said, "but how shall I get 

 up there?" "Why, we shall lend you some of our wings, tails, and 

 feathers," the Blue Jays said. "All right," she said. So they took 

 off some of their wings, tails, and feathers and put them on her legs. 

 They then told her that she must dance and sing just the same as 

 they did, and then they again began to sing. 



The Coyote now having wings ascended and danced with them. 

 When they had finished the song they all flew away, the Coyote with 

 them, and alighted on some other tree. This they repeated in all 

 three times. They then flew up high into the air, the Coyote with 

 them, and when they were very high up they all surrounded the 

 Coyote, each one saying: "This is my tail, this is my wing, these are 

 my feathers," and then tore out all the feathers that they had loaned 

 the Coyote. When they had torn out all the feathers the Coyote 

 began to fall downward to the earth. When she reached it she was 

 dead. 



Her children still had nothing to eat. When the Coyote father 

 saw that his wife was not coming home he concluded that he would 

 go and hunt her. Following her tracks, he ascended to the village, 

 passed the village on the west side, and when he reached the north 

 side of the village the dogs of the village noticed him and pursued 

 him. He at once left the footprints of his wife and ran back to his 

 children. So after that the little Coyotes had no mother. The 

 Coyote then afterwards hunted food alone for his children, and that 

 is the reason why so many Coyotes have to look out for their food 

 alone. 



