248 ANIMISM AND FOLK-LORE OF GUIANA INDIANS [eth. anx. 30 



187A. How THE Water Woman Secured a Landsman for Hus- 

 band (W) 



A coriall'nl of men were paddling down tlie river to catch crabs. They reached 

 the sea, and while hunting in and anaong the bushes one of the party heard a noise 

 behind him, and turning around was much surprised to see a young woman there, 

 and still more so when he heard her say: "Brother ! I am come." My father sent me 

 to you to give me a quake of crabs." Having handed them over to her, she paid him 

 with the loan of her body. Before taking her departure .she told him that, while the 

 boat containing him and his friends would be passing up the creek on the way home, it 

 would suddenly stop of itself in a certain spot; he was then to jump into the water 

 and join her, and she would liring him to his own home later on. This is exactly 

 what did occur. Wlien the man and his friends had filled their quakes and boarded 

 the corial , he told them that he had acted in an evil way to a girl among the crab bushes, 

 and that when the boat suddenly stopped of its own accord, he would have to jump 

 out, but that he would join them later on. After a while the corial suddenly came to 

 a standstill, our friend jumped out, and his friends left him standing in the water 

 where the girl was holding him up. They reached home at last, and on arrival at the 

 landing-place their women were waiting to carry the crabs up to the house. The one 

 who was disappointed at not seeing her husband asked what had become of him. 

 They told her that he had acted wrongly with a girl, and that they had left him behind. 

 In the meantime the erring spouse was taken by the Ho-aranni girl [Sect. 177] to her 

 people lielow, and her father told him that he had been sent for because his daughter 

 wanted him. But he added; "You can go home to your own people this very day, 

 and enjoy the feast of crabs that you and your friends have been gathering. I make 

 only this one condition. If there is any disturbance or fighting at the sport, you must 

 come back here at once: otherwise, you may remain with your own people, and we 

 will not trouble you further. I am sending both my daughters with you." And so 

 it came to pass that the two girls took him to his own landing-place, and when they 

 got near, they told him to shut his eyes. As soon as he opened them again he found 

 himself on land, clo.se to his house. He entered, and telling everj^ one ''how day?" 

 sat down; his wife brought him food and drink. But as the evening progressed, the 

 people all began to be quarrelsome in their cups, with the result that his brothers-in- 

 law, sisters-in-law, and wife all threatened to beat him for sporting with the strange 

 girl. This was quite enough for him. He rushed out of the place right back to the 

 landing, where the two Water Women were awaiting him, and who asked why he 

 was not enjoying himself at the party. But when he told them how his people had 

 commenced to interfere, and had threatened to beat him, they took him back into 

 the water, where the old Ho-ardnni father said, "Take my two daughters to wife." 



188. These Water People have great liking for women at the 

 menstrual period, so much so that, at such a time, no Carib, Akawai, 

 WaiTau, or Arawak woman will travel by boat or even cross water. 



The Moon-sick Girl and the Water Spieit (C) 



A young girl had reached the age when she was developing certain signs indicative of 

 approaching womanhood. Her mother went as usual to work in the field, but on her 

 return was much surprised to see neither daughter nor house, and in place of the latter 

 a large sheet of water. She said that Okojimio must have carried her girl awn y , and 

 began to weep. When her husband later on came back from the chase, she told him 



> For this mode of address, see Sect. 116. 



