154 THE SIA. 



cave," answered the deer, "and bnilt a fire of cedar in front of tbe cave, 

 and every time a spark flew from the fire it struck my children, making 

 a beautiful spot." "Oh," said the coyote, "1 will do the same and 

 make my children beautiful," and he hurried to his house and put his 

 children into a cave and built a tire of cedar, and then stood ofl' to 

 watch the tire. The children cried much, because the tire was very 

 hot. The coyote tried to stop their cries by telling them they would 

 soon be beautiful like the children of the deer. After a time their 

 weeping ceased and the coyote thought his words had comforted them, 

 but, in fact, the children were burned to death. When the cedar was 

 consumed the coyote hastened to the cave, expecting to find his 

 children very beautiful, but instead he found them dead ; he was en- 

 raged with the deer and ran fast to hunt her, but he could find her 

 nowhere, and he returned to his house much distressed and much dis- 

 gusted with himself for having been so easily fooled by the deer. 



THE COYOTE AND THEJ COUGAR. 



When the world was new the coyote was very industrious. He was 

 always at work passing around the world everywhere. He was never 

 lazy, but his thoughts were not good. He visited one camp of people 

 and told them he belonged to the Corn people; at another camp he 

 said he belonged to the Knife people. Both times he lied. After a 

 while the coyote told the cougar, who was the father of all game, that 

 he would like to be a ho'naaite. The cougar replied, " When your 

 thoughts are good, then you may become one." "I guess the coyote is 

 not lying, he has good thoughts now," and the cougar said to him, 

 "Come in four days to me and we will make hii'chamoni." The coyote 

 returned on the fourth day and worked eight days with the cougar' 

 preparing hii'chamoni. He was supposed to abstain during this time 

 from food, drink, and smoking, and to practice continency. The cougar 

 also fasted and practiced continency for the same period of time. Each 

 night when it was dark the cougar said, "You, man coyote, now it is 

 night, take this food which I give you and offer it to Ko'pishtaia." 

 The first night the coyote returned with a contented heart, and upon 

 entering the cougar's house he sat down. The second night after the 

 coyote left the house with the food for Ko'pishtaia, he felt a little hun- 

 gry, and he said to himself, " Last night I was not hungry, now I am hun- 

 gry, alas ! I am afraid or I would eat this food. Why have I wished to be 

 a ho'naaite '? I have food here and I wish to eat it, for I am hungry and 

 yet I am afraid." And so he argued with himself until he overcame 

 all scruples and ate the food. " Now," said he, " I am contented ; I am 

 no longer hungry;" and he returned to the cougar, pretending he had 

 ofl'ered the food to Ko'iJishtaia, and so the remaining eight nights the 

 coyote ate the food which was given him by the cougar to offer to 

 Ko'pishtaia, but he said nothing of this to anyone. The cougar grew 



