NO. I 



CH UAN MIAO SONGS AND STORIES — GRAHAM 



219 



you must use a fishnet to cover the bride's 

 head so as to hide her from the demon's 

 wanton eyes." ^^ 



When the day of the wedding arrived, the 

 demon waited on the road. They took a fish- 

 net and covered the bride's head. When they 

 had gone halfway, the demon of course saw 

 her. The demon said, "A woman with such 

 a measly face,^* even I fear her," The demon 

 then quickly returned and said, "The brides 

 of you men are truly bad looking. We do not 

 want them. From this time on you must 

 not come to our homes any more. You take 

 sheets of paper to separate us." From this 

 time on when people died they used sheets 

 of fire paper .^^ 



Why Haw1{s and Sparrow Haw\s Catch 

 Chickens (211) 



In very ancient times the hawks and spar- 

 row hawks were very large. They could 

 catch people and eat them. 



At that time the people on earth were about 

 to all be eaten up by them. Only an old man 

 and his wife were left. The husband said to 

 the hawks and sparrow hawks, "You boast 

 that you have great strengdi. Today, if you 

 can break my grinding stone, you can eat 

 me." 



As soon as the old man had finished speak- 

 ing, the sparrow hawk flew straight up in 

 the air and darted down and knocked the 

 grinding stone to pieces. Then the sparrow 

 hawk was about to seize the old man and 

 eav him. 



The old man repeatedly entreated him not 

 to eat him, but the spari'ow hawk opened 

 wide his eyes and was about to seize the man 

 and eat him. Then the old man knew that 

 he was hopeless, but again entreated him say- 

 ing, "If you eat me up today, the human race 

 will be extinguished. After that what will 

 you eat?" The hawk and sparrow hawk said, 

 "What do you want.?" The old man said, 

 "Please do not eat me. Let me beget many 

 descendants. Let them afterward raise chick- 

 ens for you to catch and eat." For this rea- 



93 When the bride is being taken to her hus- 

 band's home, and she is just starting, a paper 

 umbrella is used to cover her. When she is 

 about to enter the groom's house, they must also 

 hold up an umbrella to cover the head of the 

 bride. Even to this day the Miao hold an umbrella 

 over a bride when she is going to the groom's 

 house. Formerly nets were used. 



^* A face looking as though she has measles. 



9^ Paper made into spirit money to burn as 

 offerings to the dead. 



son, now hawks and sparrow hawks catch 

 chickens and eat them. 



The Origin of the Custom of Using a Peach 

 Branch to Exorcise Demons (405) 



In ancient times there was a father and his 

 son. When the father was ill he said to his 

 son, "When I am dead you can carry me in 

 my coffin, and the place where the ropes break 

 will be the place to bury me. After that it 

 will be well with you." 



The son carefully remembered the words 

 of his father. When his father died he hired 

 people to take his father's body and put it into 

 the coffin and carry it away. 



One day, when they had reached a place 

 outside the door of the local deity ( i i{ll ) , 

 suddenly the ropes broke, and he laid his 

 father's body down there. That night the 

 local deity returned and said, "A seven-year- 

 old cow died here. Why does nobody do 

 good deeds? Take it away and bury it." 

 Then the local deity looked, and at the same 

 time took off his own red gown, and himself 

 went and pushed die corpse. The son, when 

 he saw the red coat of the local deity behind 

 the temple, ran and picked up the red coat 

 and put it on. Then he returned home wear- 

 ing it. 



But when he wore this red coat, if he 

 talked with anybody he could see the other 

 person, but the other person could not see 

 him. Then he put on this coat and went onto 

 the street and took people's diings, but people 

 could not see him. After a while he became 

 courageous and went onto the street and took 

 people's things, but people could not see him. 

 He secured a great deal of gold and silver. 

 He wore this coat and entered the emperor's 

 palace, and the officials and soldiers in the 

 palace also could not see him. Then he went 

 into the inner room of the emperor. The 

 daughter of the emperor was there. Then he 

 slept with the daughter of the emperor, and 

 after a while the princess was with child. 



When die queen noticed that the abdomen 

 of the princess was large, she asked her 

 daughter why it was. The daughter did not 

 know that anybody had been in bed with her. 

 The queen feared that it was a spook that 

 had come and bound her daughter, so she 

 took a peach branch and struck wantonly 

 about in the room. The Miao could not avoid 

 being beaten, so he ran out and returned to 

 his home. From this time when he saw a 

 peach branch he was much afraid. Because 

 this queen used this method to drive away 

 demons, people had suspicions, and said that 



