COYOTE STEALS TURTLE’S BUFFALO. 453 
130. COYOTE STEALS TURTLE’S BUFFALO.’ 
Turtle was going along a sand bar, when he saw a herd of Buffalo on 
the other side. Hecried: ‘‘Grandfather, carry me across.’’ The Buffalo 
looked around at one another and said: ‘‘Poor Turtle wants you to carry 
him across.’’ One said: ‘‘I will go and bring him over.’ The Buffalo 
went over and Turtle saw that the Buffalo was lean, and he said: ‘‘ Grand- 
father, I did not mean you.”’ Then another came and it also was lean, 
and Turtle refused to go with him. The Buffalo kept coming, until one 
came that was fat. Then Turtle said: ‘‘Now, grandfather, you are the 
right one to carry me across the river.’’ The Buffalo told Turtle to sit 
upon his shaggy head, but Turtle said: ‘‘ No; you will shake your head and 
drop me into the water.”’ Then the Buffalo said: ‘‘Suppose you sit upon 
my back;” but Turtle said: ‘‘No.’’? Then the Buffalo said: ‘‘ Where would 
you like to sit?’ Turtle said: ‘‘Let me sit under your tail, in your anus.” 
The Buffalo said: ‘‘All right.’’ Turtle sat there and the Buffalo waded 
the river. As the Buffalo went into the river Turtle went inside and 
began to chew on the entrails of the Buffalo. When the Buffalo reached 
the other shore Turtle jumped out and said: ‘‘ Your intestines are all cut 
up.’ Buffalo began to stagger and fell to the ground and died, when 
Turtle began to sing: 
Flint knife, Iam hunting you, 
I want to skin and cut up meat. 
Flint knife, I am hunting you, 
I want to cut and scrape my arrows. 
Coyote heard Turtle singing about wanting a knife to cut meat, but 
Turtle denied it and said: ‘‘I am singing about wanting a knife to make 
arrows.’ Coyote’s ears lay back on his head, and he was very good to 
Turtle and talked so kindly to him that Turtle finally admitted that he 
wanted a knife to cut meat with. He told Coyote about the Buffalo and 
they both went to the Buffalo. Then Coyote began to talk to Turtle. 
He said: ‘‘My grandson, let us jump over the Buffalo, and whoever 
jumps over the Buffalo shall own it. The loser must help the winner to 
cut up the Buffalo. Then we will divide the meat.’’ Turtle agreed, 
because Coyote had been so kind and talked so nicely to him. Coyote 
smiled to himself and then offered to jump first. He jumped clear over 
the Buffalo. Turtle ran and tried to jump, but failed. Then Coyote 
claimed the Buffalo. Coyote cut up the meat and said: ‘‘My grandson, 
1Told by Thief, Kitkehahki. The story is told to the children to teach them 
that when they kill game they should not be fooled by those who might misrepre- 
sent things to them. 
