FOLKLORE. 327 



FOLKLORK. 



Duriug the long winter nigbts or during the periods of cold or in- 

 clement weather in which the Indians may not venture out, they sit 

 around the fire and relate stories intended for the instruction as well 

 as entertainment of the younger people. The older men have a great 

 stock of these stories, and many of the women are noted for their ability 

 in entertaining the children, who sit, with staring eyes and open mouth, 

 in the arms of their parents or elders. 



The following stories came to me directly and not through the 

 medium of another white person, and probably I am the only white 

 person who has heard some of them. I have endeavored to give them 

 as nearly in the form of the original as the differences between the 

 English and the Indian languages will permit. 



t<itory of the wolverene und the brant. — A wolverene calling all the birds 

 together addressed them thus: "Do you not know that I am your 

 brother"? Come to me and I will dress you in feathers." After having 

 dressed them up he made wings for himself and said : " Now, brothers, 

 let us fly." The brant told the wolverene, " You must not look below 

 while we are flying over the point of land when you hear a noise 

 below. Take a turn when we take a turn." 



The first turn they took the wolverene did not look below, but at the 

 second turn they took, when tbey came over the point of land, the 

 animal looked below when he heard the noise of the shouting Indians 

 and down he came like a bundle of rags.' 



All the Indians ran up to him and exclaimed "There is a brant fallen 

 down." One of tlie old Indian women got hold of him and began to 

 pluck his feathers off, then to disembowel him. She of course smelled 

 the horrible stench and exclaimed, "This goose is not fit to eat as it is 

 already rotten ! " She gave the carcass to one of the children to throw 

 away. Another old woman came up and inquired, "Where did you 

 throw the brant goose to ! How could it be rotten ? It is not long 

 since it was killed." The former old woman replied to her, "Go and 

 see, if you do not believe." She went and found nothing but the dead 

 wolverene. 



Story of the irolverenc. — A wolverene was running along the sea- 

 shore and perceived a number of geese, brant, ducks, and loons sitting 

 in the water a short distance off. The wolverene addressing them said, 

 "Come here, brothers. I have Ibuud a pretty bees' nest. I will give it 

 to you if you will come on shore and have a dance." All the birds 

 went on land. The wolverene said, "Let us have a dance and I will 

 sing. Shut your eyes and do not open them until we are done dancing. 

 He began to sing, "A-ho'umu-hou-mu'-mu'-hum'." The last word was 



'When the Iiidian.s perceive a flock of these brant they make a loud clamor, which frightens the 

 birds so much that they lose their senses, fall to the ground and are thus killed. These birds are 

 only seen in the spring migrations and then iu great multitudes, while m the fall itia rare to see even 

 a single individual, as they have a different return route than in spring. 



