Rural School Leaflet. 553 



"Homeward then went Hiawatha 

 To the lodge of old Nokomis, 

 And the seven days of his fasting 

 Were accomplished and completed. 

 But the place was not forgotten 

 Where he wrestled with Mondamin; 

 Nor forgotten nor neglected 

 Was the grave where lay Mondamin, 

 Sleeping in the rain and sunshine, 

 Where his scattered plumes and garments 

 Faded in the rain and sunshine. 



"Day by day did Hiawatha 

 Go to wait and watch beside it ; 

 Kept the dark mould soft above it; 

 Kept it clean from weeds and insects, 

 Drove away with scoffs and shoutings, 

 Kahgahgee, the king of ravens. 



"Till at length a small green feather 

 From the earth shot slowly upward, 

 Then another and another, 

 Ani before the summer ended 

 Stood the maize in all its beauty, 

 With its shining robes about it, 

 And its long, soft, yellow tresses; 

 And in rapture Hiawatha 

 Cried aloud, 'It is Mondamin! 

 Yes, the friend of man, Mondamin!' 



"Then he called to old Nokomis 

 And lagoo, the great boaster. 

 Showed them where the maize was growing. 

 Told them of his wondrous vision, 

 Of his wrestling and his triumph, 

 Of this new gift to the nations, 

 Which should be their food forever, 



"And still later, when the Autumn 

 Changed the long, green leaves to yellow, 

 And the soft and juicy kernels 

 Grew like wampum hard and yellow, 

 Then the ripened ears he gathered. 

 Stripped the withered husks from off them. 

 As he once had stripped the wrestler, 

 Gave the first Feast of Mondamin, 

 And made known unto the people. 

 This new gift of the Great Spirit." 



General Outdoor Study. — Often it is restful to children and teachers 

 to take occasional moments for some touch with the out-of-doors; to 

 go outside the close rooms and breathe the freshness of the air; to have 

 a little talk about the scenery ; to notice some great tree with its leafless 

 branches; perhaps to watch some brave bit of animal life that may be 

 out in this winter weather, a squirrel, a chickadee, a nuthatch. 



As the days begin to lengthen have the children note the changes 

 in the coloring of the hills. Let them gather a few twigs of some of 

 the trees of wood and wayside. Let them note the swelling buds that 

 respond to the warmth of the schoolroom. 



