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offence. The shadow of the moose, the bear, etc., constantly wanders about 
like a man’s own shadow, and carries back information to the animal’s 
soul. Deer, for example, seem to know when a death has occurred or is 
impending in a family, and keep away from the hunter. Some of the 
Indians will not cook deer-meat when they are hunting the deer, lest the 
animal’s shadow be annoyed by the smell of its meat and spoil the hunters’ 
luck. For the same reason some will not eat trout during the October 
trout-fishing, but cook other food instead. A man should never kill a 
porcupine and throw away the meat, for the shadow of the porcupine will 
harm his children. He should aim always at the head or heart of an 
animal in order to kill it painlessly ; if he aims merely to wound it the soul 
of the animal will be offended and prevent him from securing much game. 
He should not think disparagingly of a bear when he is eating its flesh, or 
the meat will kick him in the chest (i.e. cause indigestion). He should 
never think disparagingly, indeed, of any animal or fish. 
“ Some people once made fun of the suckers when they were spawning. That 
night they could not sleep because all around them people seemed to be hoo-hooing 
and throwing stones at the wigwams. Occasionally the Ojibwa have seen suckers 
transform themselves into men wearing feathers like the Indians of olden days ” 
(Jonas King). 
The first chapter described how families not infrequently changed 
their hunting-grounds because the shadows of the animals had become 
wary of their presence and kept the game away from them. A primary 
rule in hunting is not to concentrate all your attention on the game that 
you are seeking. Look at the trees around you and consider whether they 
are suitable for making fish-spears or can be turned to other uses. Examine 
the plants at your feet and consider whether they will make beneficial 
medicines. Animals are subject to deception no less than human beings, 
and the shadow of the deer (or moose) will be thrown off its guard, will 
believe that you are not engaged in hunting, and will fail to carry back a 
warning. Occasionally a deer will decide, for some reason or other, that it 
will not allow a certain hunter to kill it. It is then hopeless for that hunter 
to pursue it, because its shadow watches his every movement; even if he 
succeeds in wounding the deer, he will never be able to kill it. 
“A hunter and his family whom I met in my boyhood were very short of food; 
so they blackened their faces with charcoal to disguise their shadows and throw the 
animals off their guard 3 ’ (Jonas King). 
Not only is the animal’s psychology similar to that of man’s, but 
society in the animal world is similar to human society. Animals have 
their families and their homes, like human beings; they meet and act in 
concert, like the Indians at their fishing and hunting grounds. A cricket 
that finds food invites all its fellows; if you kill it a messenger goes round 
and informs all the other crickets in the neighbourhood, who come and 
eat up everything. A bear, a deer, etc., will carry information to its 
fellows far and wide. More than this, just as the Ojibwa have their chiefs 
(ogimma) or leading men, so there are ogimma or 11 bosses ” (to use a 
word from the lumber camps that the Indians themselves employ) among 
animals, birds, and fish, even among the trees. There is no single chief 
ruling the whole Ojibwa nation, but a chief in every band; similarly there 
