UE.nVi'J LEGENDS 705 



135. S'hagowexot'iia, the Spirit of the Tides 



In the long ago an uncle and his nephew, his sister's son, dwelt 

 together in a lodge. It so happened that the uncle, the elder man, 

 had to keep a recumbent position. He had lain so long that the 

 roots of a tree standing near their lodge had overgrown his body, so 

 it was quite impossible for him to arise. 



As time passed he called his nepliew to him and said to the youth: 

 " Go yonder in the distance to the clearings, where the logs are lying 

 one on the top of another, and plant there beans, corn, and squashes. 

 They make good eating, I assure you. And if these things should 

 grow under your cultivation they will furnish us with something to 

 eat in the future." Thus spoke the old man. 



In a short time he continued : " Bring forth from under the couch 

 yonder a basket in which there is some seed corn, as it is called." 

 The youth brought the basket and placed it beside the old man. 

 With the seed corn were the beans for seed and the squash seed. 



Then the old man said to the youth : " Bring me from under the 

 couch yonder the small baskets, 10 in number ; I need them ; for you 

 must mak^ a girdle of baskets around your body."' So the nephew 

 brought the baskets to his uncle, who with his own hands placed 

 in each of the baskets some of the several kinds of seeds, thus divid- 

 ing the seed corn, the beans for seed, and the squash seed. He care- 

 fully completed his task. 



Having done so, he addressed his nephew, saying: "Come, now! 

 go yonder to the clearings where the logs are Ij' ing. one on the top 

 of another, and there you must plant these seeds." The young 

 nephew replied: "So be it, my mother's brother. I will place be- 

 side you all the things which may be necessary for you while I 

 shall be absent planting the seeds." So the nephew placed beside 

 his uncle a bark dish containing hominy, a fii'e poker and a laiife, 

 and a cake of boiled corn bread. Then he said to his imcle: "I am 

 now going to plant the seeds." 



Having arrived at the clearings he set to work preparing the 

 ground for planting the seeds which he had brought. He had been 

 at work a considerable time and had already planted a numlier of 

 lulls when he heard the voice of his uncle singing. The words of the 

 song were: "Xow, now, now I believe that I have arisen, now indeed." • 

 At this the youthful nephew ran hack swiftly to the lodge to pre- 

 vent his uncle from arising. Having arrived there the young man 

 seized his uncle and repressed his desire to arise, asking him, " What 

 has come to pass that you began to sing?" The uncle replied: "I 

 became thirsty, and so I began to sing." The young man brought 

 his uncle water to drink, and after the latter had (luenched his thirst 

 the youthful nephew said to him : " You must now lie quiet, as I ask 

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