320 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 43 



was doing, and he told her his luicle had sent him to procure some of her 

 feathers. Then, instead of harming him, she said, "All right," and gave him 

 not only her feathers but one of her young ones to take with him. When you 

 get close to the house," she said, " tell your uncle you have brought home a 

 nice bird for him, and throw it up into the air so that it may tiy a short dis- 

 tance and come down." He did as directed, and when the young bird reached 

 the ground one of his uncle's children ran to seize it, whereupon the bird flew 

 away with it. They never saw the child again. 



Now, the boy's uncle became angrier yet. He said to his nephew, " Let us 

 prepare those arrows so that we can go across the ocean <^ t-.i hunt." They were 

 going after deer. As soon as they were ready they crossed. (.)n the other side 

 was a hill, and the uncle told his nephew to go around it on one side while he 

 went around on the other. So they set out, but as soon as his nephew was out 

 of sight of the boat his uncle returned to it and started home. Before he had 

 gotten very far away his nephew discovered what he was doing, ran down on 

 the shore opposite, and tried to reach him with his bowstring, but in vain. So 

 his uncle went on home and he was left alone on the other side of the sea. 



After this the boy wandered off into the woods and met a great horned owl 

 (Tunica, u'lca; French, Jiihoii grosse ttte). Lie went farther and met a 

 screech owl (Tunica, ci'luka; French un chouelt [?]), and farther on a horned 

 owl (Tunica, nl'ma; French, hibou a comes). He cursed at these owls as 

 he passed them, for he was sad and angry. By and by he met a big white 

 woodpecker (Tunica, c'tca), and cursed at him also. Then the wood- 

 pecker said, " Do not curse me, but come to me and I will help you." He 

 wanted the boy to stay with him, but the boy said, " How can I get up to 

 your house?" for it was in a hollow tree. The woodpecker answered, "I will 

 make a waj' for you. I will put fungi (cltuinpif/nonti) together until you can 

 reach my hole." He did so, and the boy went up to him, but found the hole 

 too small. He said, "How can I get inside?" " Stoop down," said the wood- 

 pecker. The boy did so and found a large door by which to enter. 



That same night a witch (female beast or devil; Tunica, tic-Ue'na, 'chang- 

 ing herself) came toward the tree in search of him. This was what his 

 uncle had thought would destroy him. Then the woodpecker told the boy that 

 the witch was coming after him and placed him underneath while he himself 

 remained at the door. Before the witch reached them they could hear her 

 encouraging her dogs. These dogs were lions {yO'rmn akd'tate), tigers 

 (lil'kua), wolves {pd'liasa), tiger cats (IvO'init), raccoons (ijl'shi), etc. Be- 

 fore she got to the place she smelled the boy, though she did not know he was 

 there. She said, " I smell flesh." Then she told her dogs that she was going 

 up to get him and throw him down for them to eat, and that he might cry, 

 "Oh! it is I ! Oh! it is I!" (Imayo' .' Imayo' !), pretendhig that he was the 

 witch, but they were not to let him go. Now the last of the fungus steps had 

 been made weak imrposely, and when the witch reached it she fell upon the 

 ground anc\ the beasts seized her. She cried, " Oh ! it is I ! Oh ! it is I ! " 

 but on account of the directions she had given them it was some time before 

 they let her go. When they did so, she got up and bit the animals. She 

 climbed the tree again with like result, and kept on doing so until daybreak. 

 Then she went away. 



As soon as the witch had gone, the boy wanted to start away, but his pro- 

 tector would not let him until the sun was some distance above the horizon. 

 Then he sent him off. It was a fine day. Now the boy kept on around the hill 

 close to the water until he at last reached a house. A pretty trail, which the 



» The ocean is treated in this story as a body of fresh water, showing that the Tunica 

 were a strictly inland people. 



