552 SENECA FICnON, LEGENDS, AND MYTHS Ieth. ann. 82 



overtake it before it struck the ground. So they kept batting the 

 ball high up into the air and overtaking it before it could reach the 

 ground again. After playing thus for long hours, each would re- 

 turn to his own retreat beneath the bed under which he lived. 



This outdoor sport was indulged in by the twins for a long time. 

 One day, on being tossed into the air, the ball at once took a course 

 directly toward the lodge of their blind uncle, but the twins kept 

 up with it, hitting it with their bats before it could touch the ground. 

 They did not notice that they were approaching a lodge, hence 

 they were greatly surjn-ised to see it finally fall into the smoke 

 hole of the lodge. They cautiously approached the lodge and, peer- 

 ing through the crevices in its bark walls, they saw their ball in the 

 hands of a man with eyeless sockets. 



One of the boys said to the other, " Lo. Go in, and get the ball," 

 but the other replied, " I fear him. You go." Finally they entered 

 the lodge together to ask the man to give them back their ball. 

 As they drew near the man, he said to them: "Do not be afraid 

 of me. Fear not; I am your friend. It is I who have caused you 

 to come here to my lodge. By sorcery I caused your ball to fall 

 into my hand. Indeed, I am your uncle, your mother's brother. 

 I should very much like to see you two, but you observe I have no 

 eyes, so I can not do so." At this the twins exclaimed together: 

 "Oh! maternal uncle, how did you lose your eyes?" The uncle re- 

 plied: "Your grandmother, Gaho"'dji'da"ho"k, overmatched me in 

 sorcery, and as a penalty she took out my eyes, so I am blind." The 

 twins answered: "Oh, uncle! we desire very much that you see us." 

 To this the uncle replied : "As it seems to be an impossibility for 

 me to see again, it would probably be useless for you to wish me 

 to see you." But the twins said : " We will try to make you able to 

 see us." 



With this remark the twins left their ball and their lacrosse clubs 

 and went into the neighboring forest. They had not gone very far 

 before they met Degens'ge (the Horned Owl). They asked him 

 to lend them his eyes for a short time, promising to return them to 

 him uninjured. Complying with their request on this condition, he 

 removed his eyes and handed them to the twins; then he sat down 

 to await their return. Delighted with their success, the twins has- 

 tened back to the lodge to their uncle. Placing the borrowed eyes 

 in his sightless sockets, the_y asked him whether he could see with 

 them, whereupon he told them that he could see nothing. Disap- 

 pointed with this result, the twins removed the eyes from their uncle's 

 head and returned them to the Degens'ge (Horned Owl) in the for- 

 est, thanking him for his kindness. 



Going a short distance farther into the forest, the twins met 

 Ke'k"howa (Barred Owl), whom they asked to lend his eyes to 



