322 MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE [ETH.ASN.ia 



ing ill (>very direction. It is the uicdiciiie lake of the birds and ani- 

 mals, and whenever a bear is wounded by the hunters he makes his 

 way through the woods to this lake and plunyes into the water, and 

 when he comes out upon the other side his wounds are healed. For 

 this reason the animals keep the lake in\isihle to the iumter. 



70. THE BRIDE FROM THE SOUTH 



The North went traveling, and after going far and meeting many 

 different tribes he finally fell in love with the daughter of the South 

 and wanted to marry her. The girl was willing, but her parents 

 objected and said, "Ever since you came the weather has been cold, 

 and if you stay here we may all freeze to death." The North pleaded 

 hai'd, and said that if they woidd let him have their daughter he 

 would take her back to his own country, so at last they consented. 

 They were married and he took his ])ride to his own country, and 

 when she arrived there she found the people all living in ice houses. 



The next day, when the sun rose, the houses began to leak, and as 

 it climbed higher they began to melt, and it grew warmer and 

 warmer, until linally the people came to the young husband and told 

 him he must send his wife home again, or the weather would get so 

 warm that the whole settlement would be melted. He loved his wife 

 and so held out as long as he could, but as the sun grew hotter the 

 people were more urgent, and at last he had to send her home to her 

 parents. 



The people said that as she had been born in the South, and nour- 

 ished all her life upon food that grew in the same climate, her whole 

 nature was warm and unfit for the North. 



71. THE ICE MAN 



Once when the people were burning the woods in the fall the blaze 

 set tire to a poplar tree, which continued to burn until the fir(> went 

 down into the roots and Inirned a great hole in the ground. It burned 

 and burned, and the hole grew constantly larger, until the people became 

 frightened and were afraid it would l)urn the whole world. They tried 

 to put out the tire, ))ut it had gone too deep, and they did not know 

 what to do. 



At last .some one said there was a man living in a house of ice far in 

 the north who could put out the tire, so messengers were sent, and after 

 traveling a long distance they came to the ice house and found tiie Ice 

 Man at home. He was a little fellow with long hair hanging down to 

 the ground in two plaits. The messengers told him theii- errand and 

 he at once said, "'O yes, I can help you." and began to unplait liis hair. 

 When it was all unl)raided he took it up in one hand and struck it once 

 across his other hand, and the messengers felt a wind blow against 



