^"Kw.'x'r] FICTION 161 



and call out : " Well, little boy, you think you are going to die, but 

 you will not. I am going to help you. The chief has sent a man to 

 see whether you are still alive, but he will not be here for some time 

 yet. I will be your friend. When you want me to aid you all you have 

 to do is to think of me and I will come." Soon after that the boy 

 fell asleep. In the morning he found a pile of wood at his door, 

 and on a low limb of a near-by tree hung a piece of meat. Now he 

 was happy. Building a fire, he cooked and ate some of the meat. 



The next night this strange man came again. Stopping at the 

 door, he shook his feet but he did not come in. He said : " The man 

 who is coming will not help you; he is coming in the form of a great 

 bear; he will be here tomorrow forenoon. In the morning you will 

 find between the roots of the old stump in the dooryard a trusty 

 knife. You must sharpen this knife to kill the bear. When he is 

 near, you must run to the spring where the tall hemlock stands and 

 climb the tree a little way; the great bear will follow you. Then 

 slip down on the other side, and when he is coming down after you, 

 stab him in the forefoot." 



The next morning the boy did as the voice told him. After he 

 had killed the bear, he went to the lodge and was very glad. 



The next night he awoke, and the stranger, knocking, said : " My 

 friend, I want to say to you that men are coming for you; you must 

 go with them for they will be fond of you. You must not be proud. 

 The headman of the tribe will want you to stay with liim. You will 

 be one of the fastest runners among your people. Do not forget that 

 I am your friend ; you will not be able to see me, for I am the one 

 whom you call Gaha. If you are in trouble just think of me and I 

 will come and help you. Tomorrow afternoon four men will be in 

 this lodge. They will ask you about the great bear, and you shall 

 say, ' I saw no great bear, but a strong wind went through the woods 

 one morning.' " 



The next day four men came to the lodge with food; they saw that 

 the boy had wood and meat but no bow nor arrow. They took him 

 home the next day. The chief ordered them to bring him to his lodge 

 for the lad's relatives were all dead. The chief said, " You shall be 

 my grandson and you shall live with me." The boy wanted a club 

 instead of a bow and arrows. " \\Taat do want a club for? " asked 

 the chief. " To kill deer with," replied the boy. The chief had a club 

 made for him. Owing to his great speed, the youth used to chase 

 deer, which he struck in the forehead with his club; he also killed 

 birds by striking them before they could rise to fly. 



The last word that his friend Gaha said to him was: "'Do not 

 think that you are the swiftest nmner living. Do not boast of your 

 speed." But the boy had this idea of running always in his mind; 

 94615°— 18 11 



