452 MYTHS OK THK CHEROKEE [kth.asx. 19 



27. Why tiik Deer's teeth ahe blunt (p. 276); This story follows tlic last in reg- 

 ular se<iuenc(;' ami was told l)y tlie same iiifoniiants. 



In a Jiearilla myth the Fox kills a dangerous Bear monster under preteiisi- < it' trim- 

 ming down liis legs so that he ean run faster (Russell, >fyth of the.Iiearilla, in Jour- 

 nal of American Folk-Lore, j). 2(52, October, 1898). 



28. What became of the Rabbit (p. 277): This version was obtained from Suyeta, 

 who says the Rabbit never went up, because he was ' ' too mean " to be with the other 

 animals. Swimmer, however, says that he did afterward go up to Gillun'littT. The 

 belief in a large rabbit still existing beyond agreat river may possibly have its origin 

 in indirect reports of the jack-rabl)it west of tlie Missouri. 



The myth has close parallel in the southern negro story of "The Origin of the 

 Ocean". (Harris, Nights with Uncle Remus), in which the Rabbit by a stratagem 

 persuades the Lion to jump across a creek, when the Rabbit "cut de string w'at hoi' de 

 banks togedder. . . . Co'se wen Brer Rabbit tuck' n cut de string, de banks er de 

 creek, de banks day fall back, dey did, en Mr Lion can't jump back. De banks dey 

 keep on fallin' back, en de creek keep on gittin' wider en wider, twel bimeby Brer 

 Rabbit en Mr Lion ain't in sight er one er n'er, en fum dat day to dia de big waters 

 bin rollin' 'tw-ix um." 



Kit! — A Cherokee exclamation used as a starting signal and in introducing the 

 paragraphs of a speech. It might be approximately rendered, N<ni\' 



29. Why the Mink s.mells (p. 277): Obtained from John Ax. 



30. Why the Mole lives underground (p. 277): This story, from John Ax, not 

 only accounts for the Mole's underground lialjit, but illustrates a conmion ('herokee 

 witclicraft belief, which has parallels all over the world. 



31. The Terrapin's escape from the Wolves (p. 278) ; This story, of which tlie 

 version here given, from Swimmer and John Ax, is admittedly imperfect, is known 

 also among the western Cherokee, having been mentioned by AVafford and others in 

 the Nation, although for some reason none of them seemed able to fill in the details. 

 A somewhat similar story w'as given as belonging to her own tribe by a Catawba 

 woman married among the East Cherokee. It suggests number 21, "The Rabbit 

 and the tar wolf," and has numerous parallels. 



In the Creek version, in the Tuggle manuscrijit, the Terrapin ridicules a woman, 

 who retaliates by crushing his shell with a corn pestle. He repairs the injury by 

 singing a medicine song, but the scars remain in the checkered spots on his back. 

 In a variant in the same collection the ants mend his shell with tar, in return for liis 

 fat and blood. Other parallels are among the Omaha, "How the Big Turtle went 

 on the Warpath " (Dorsey, Contributions to North American Ethnology, vi, p. 275), 

 and the Cheyenne, "The Turtle, the Grasshopper, and the Skunk" (Kroeber, Chey- 

 enne Tales, in Journal of American Folk-Lore, July, 1900). The myth is recorded 

 also from west Africa by Chatelain ("The Man and the Turtle," in Folktales of 

 Angola, 1894). 



Kiinahe'iici. — This is a sour corn gruel, tin- hinifnUDr "Tom Fullei-" of the Creeks, 

 which is a favorite food jireparation among all the southern tribes. A large earthern 

 jar of kanahe'na, with a wooden spoon upright in it, is always upon a bench just 

 inside the cabin door, for every visitor to help himself. 



32. Origin of the Groundhog dance (p. 279): This story is from Swimmer, the 

 supplementary part being added liy John Ax. The Groundhog dance is one of those 

 belonging to the great thanksgiving ceremony. Green-corn dance. It consists of 

 alternate advances and retreats by the whole line of dancers in obedience to signals 

 by the song leader, who sings to the accom|)animent of a rattle. The burden of 

 the song, which is without meaning, is 



Ha'irti/e'fhl' Ynlui'iriye'rlii [twice] Yu-ii 

 Hi'iinrpi' iir IIrilii'ii<ifiu' iiv [twice] Yii-yn. 



