244 THE PIMA INDIANS [eth. ann. 2G 



THE MOMAN AND COYOTE 



Once the river rose very high and spread over the land. An Indian 

 woman was going along with tortillas in a basket on her head, and 

 she waded in the water up to her waist. 



C'oyote was afraid of the water, so he was up in a cottonwood tree. 

 When he saw the woman he said, "Oh, come to this tree and give me 

 some of those nice tortillas." 



"No," said the woman, "I can not give them to you; they are for 

 somebody else." 



"If you do not come here I will shoot J^ou," said Coyote, for he was 

 supposed to have a bow. So she came to the tree and said, "You 

 must come down and get them, for I can not climb trees." Coyote 

 came down as far as he daretl, but he was afraid of the water. Then 

 the woman said, "Just see how shallow it is, only up to my ankles." 

 But she was standing on a big stump. Coyote looked and thought it 

 was shallow, so he jumped down and was drowned. Anil the woman 

 went on. 



THE PIMA BOY AND THE APACHES 



An old woman once lived with her grandson. The boy's father had 

 been killed by the Apaches and his mother taken captive. They had 

 treated the woman very badly and burned her arms with hot ashes and 

 coals and made big scars. The boy had heard these stories about his 

 mother. 



The boy and the okl woman had a very hard time getting along, and 

 he used to go where certain persons were grinding corn and brush a 

 few grains as they fell from the metate into his blanket antl carry them 

 home and the grandmother would make soup of them, and that was 

 the way they lived. But by and by these people went away and when 

 the boy went to get some corn there was none there and he had nothing 

 to take home. The grandmother scolded him and told him to go back ; 

 and when he refused she whipped him. Then he said, "I know where 

 my mother is, and I am going to her." The old woman said, ' ' No, you 

 must not; the Apaches will kill you." But he said, "I am going; my 

 mother will not let them harm me." So he went. His grandmother 

 trailed him to the mountains, and finally from the very liighest peak 

 she saw him going along toward the camp. She also saw his mother, 

 her daughter-in-law, out alone gathering seeds. She recognized her 

 at a distance by the shining of her scars. The old woman ran after 

 the boy, but when she caught up with him he stepped aside and turned 

 into a saguaro. Then after she had turned around and gone back he 

 resumed liis form and went on to his mother. 



When she saw him she cried out, "Don't come near me, the Apaches 

 will kill you; you know what the}' did to me, ami they will kill you." 



"What can I do?" he said, "What do the Apaches hke?" 



