IN LEGEND AND FABLE 39 



which comes to us from the land of Siberia 

 in Asia. There the folk tell why the swal- 

 low's tail is forked. 



Why the Swallow's Tail is Forked 



A Legend of Eastern Siberia 



A species of marmot is native in Poland 

 and in near-by Galicia, as well as in the lands 

 to the east as far as central Asia. It is also 

 very common in Eastern Siberia. There, 

 as elsewhere, the little animal is called 

 Bobac. 



Under the shoulder of the Bobac, in the 

 flesh, may be found a whitish piece which 

 must not be eaten, for it is the remains of 

 the man who was transformed into Bobac 

 by the wrath of the Evil Spirit. For you 

 must know, O stranger from a far land, that 

 all the Bobacs were once upon a time men, 

 who lived by hunting. And they were the 

 most skillful of all hunters. But with the 

 passing of time they became such braggarts 



