164 SENECA FICTION, LEGENDS, AND MYTHS [eth. ann.32 



The hoy then lay down, but he could not sleep. Just at daybreak 

 a voice spoke to him. Opening his eyes, he saw a fine-looking, mid- 

 dle-aged man, beautifully decorated with paint and feathers, stand- 

 ing at the bow of the boat. The boy saw, too, that the canoe was on 

 dry land. Now the stranger roused the old man saying, " Come 

 with me." Taking up their bows and arrows a.nd other equipage, 

 they followed the man, who took them to a long lodge. They entered 

 it. There were, they saw, many persons inside, some asleep, some 

 iiwake. When the old man of the lodge met them he said to the 

 guide, "Oh! you have brought them," and then, turning to the two 

 friends, he said : " I ain glad that you have come. I know you have 

 heard of us before. We are the people whom you call Hinon in 

 your home. We bring rain to make corn and beans and squashes 

 grow. We sent our young man to the island for you. It is we who 

 put it into 3'our mind to come east. We want you to help us, for you 

 are more powerful in orenda than is an3'thing else. The world was 

 made for you. You are more powerful in orenda in some respects 

 than we are, and we want you to help us to kill some of your and 

 our enemies." 



Then they ate their morning meal. There were all kinds of food — 

 corn, beans, squa.shes. " We have these things. AA'e take a little from 

 a great many fields," said the old man. " When you see a small row 

 of corn, or a withered squash, or bad kernels of corn on an ear, or 

 dried-up beans in a pod, then you may know that we have taken 

 our part from these. We have taken our part — that part is the 

 spirit of the.se things — and we have left the shells, or husks. If you 

 should see a whole field blasted and withered, then you would know 

 that we had taken the whole field. But we seldom or never do that. 

 We take only a little from each field." 



After they had eaten, the youngest warrior of the long lodge said : 

 " Xow we will go and try to kill the great porcuj^ine. Off there on 

 the hill stands an immense hemlock tree, the largest tree in the 

 whole country. On that tree dwells a terrible porcupine, of such 

 size that his quills are as large as long darts. These he hurls in all 

 directions, killing all who approach him. We Hinon can not kill 

 him, and we are afraid to go near the tree." So tiiey all agreed to go 

 together. 



As they went toward the tree the boy marched ahead with his 

 little bow and arrows. The old man, his friend, and the Hinon 

 laughed to see him, and the eld man said in fun: "'I think that our 

 little friend might try his luck first." "All right," said the Hinon. 

 The little boy was pleased with the suggestion. They stopped at a 

 good distance from the great hemlock tree. No one would venture 

 nearer. 



