IX 

 THE FLIGHT TO THE MOON 



A POWERFUL conjurer, who had a bear for his 

 mascot, thought he would like to go to the Moon. 

 He had his hands tied up and a rope fastened 

 around his knees and neck. Then he sat down at 

 the rear of his hut with his back to the lamps and 

 had the light extinguished. 



He called for his mascot, and the bear at once 

 appeared and he mounted its back. Up it car- 

 ried him, above the village, above the mountains, 

 up and up till they reached the Moon. To his 

 surprise, the Moon was a house which was cov- 

 ered with beautiful white deerskins. Now white 

 deer are strange and sacred and are hatched from 

 long white eggs buried deep in the soil. There is 

 mystery and magic in white deer, white buffalo, 

 and in all albino animals. The Man in the Moon 

 dried these white deerskins and fastened them 

 over his house, which, as I said, is the Moon itself. 



On each side of the door to the house was the 

 upper part of an enormous walrus. The beasts 



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