Silently sank Pau-Puk-Keewis; 

 Black became his shirt of deerskin, 

 Black his moccasins and leggings, 

 In a broad black tail behind him 

 Spread his fox-tails and his fringes; 

 He was changed into a beaver. 

 'Make me large,' said Pau-Puk- 

 Keewis, 

 ' Make me large and make me 



larger, 



Larger than the other beavers.' 

 ' Yes,' the beaver chief responded, 

 ' When our lodge below you enter, 

 In our wigwam we will make you 

 Ten times larger than the others.' 



Thus into the clear brown water 

 Silently sank Pau-Puk-Keewis : 

 Found the bottom covered over 

 With the trunks of trees and 



branches, 



Hoards of food against the winter, 

 Piles and heaps against the famine; 

 Found the lodge with arching door- 

 way, 



Leading into spacious chambers. 

 Here they made him large and 



larger, 



Made him largest of the beavers, 

 Ten times larger than the others. 

 'You shall be our ruler,' said they; 

 'Chief and King of all the beavers.' 

 But not long had Pau-Puk- 

 Keewis 



Sat in state among the beavers, 

 When there came a voice of warn- 

 ing 



From the watchman at his station 

 In the water-flags and lilies, 

 Saying, 'Here is Hiawatha! 

 Hiawatha with his hunters!' 

 Then they heard a cry above 

 them, 



Heard a shouting and a tramping, 



Heard a crashing and a rushing, 



And the water round and o'er 

 them 



Sank and sucked away in eddies, 



And they knew their dam was 



broken. 

 On the lodge's roof the hunters 



Leaped, and broke it all asunder; 



Streamed the sunshine through the 

 crevice, 



Sprang the beavers through the 

 doorway, 



Hid themselves in deeper water, 



In the channel of the streamlet ; 



But the mighty Pau-Puk-Keewis 



Could not pass beneath the door- 

 way; 



He was puffed with pride and 

 feeding, 



He was swollen like a bladder. 

 Through the roof looked Hia- 

 watha, 



Cried aloud, ' O Pau-Puk-Keewis! 



Vain are all your craft and cun- 

 ning, 



Vain your manifold disguises! 



Well I knowyou, Pau-Puk-Keewis!' 

 With their clubs they beat and 

 bruised him, 



Beat to death poor Pau - Puk - 

 Keewis, 



Pounded him as maize is pounded, 



Till his skull was crushed to pieces. 

 Six tall hunters, lithe and limber, 



Bore him home on poles and 

 branches, 



Bore the body of the beaver ; 



But the ghost, the Jeebi in him, 



Thought and felt as Pau-Puk- 

 Keewis, 



Still lived on as Pau-Puk-Keewis. 



from Cbe Sons of fjfawatba. 



