A TEEASUEY OF ESKIMO TALES 



The people on earth were terribly distressed 

 when it remained dark so long. They prayed to 

 Raven and offered him rich presents of food and 

 furs, but he wouldn't bring back the sun. They 

 kept on begging him, saying at last: " We have 

 crept around in the darkness finding our store- 

 houses and getting the meat, till now it is almost 

 gone, and we are likely to starve. Let us have 

 light for a little time at least, so we may get more 

 food." 



So Raven yielded a trifle and held up the sun 

 in one hand for two days while all the people went 

 hunting; then he put it back and darkness re- 

 turned. Another long time would pass and the 

 people would make many offerings before he 

 would let them have light again. This was re- 

 peated many times/ 



In this same sky village with Raven and his 

 parents lived an older brother of Raven who 

 thought the punishment of men was being car- 

 ried too far. This brother felt sorry for the peo- 

 ple on earth, but he didn't say a word about it to 

 anyone. Pie thought out a plan which he kept 

 to himself. 



After a time he pretended to die, and was put 



1 This story is probably the Eskimo's explanation of the 

 very long nights in the far north during part of the year. 



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