Buffalo a long distance off. The Coyote ran, and nearly caught up
with the Buffalo. The Coyote saw the Buffalo drop chips. He went
and ate some of them. The Buffalo looked around and saw the Coyote
eating the chips. The Buffalo turned back and asked the Coyote what
he was doing. The Coyote said: “O, you shaggy-looking thing; why
do you not go on your way and not bother a poor fellow like me? I
am eating some pemmican that some fellow must have dropped.” After
a while, the Coyote said, “Say, grandfather, can you run?” “Yes,”
said the Buffalo, “I can run fast.” “But,” said the Coyote, “I do
not see how you can run with such big feet. Then there is danger
of your breaking your legs. Ah, grandfather,” said the Coyote, “I
think I can beat you. I am a man who has fought in battles, and
have killed many people on account of my swiftness. If you are
willing to run with me, do not stand there and laugh at me. I can
beat you.” So the Buffalo said, “If you want to run a race, I will
run with you, and I will show you that my legs can carry me a long
way and beat you.” “All right,” said the Coyote, “I will go and
measure the ground, and we will run.” So the Coyote went away and
selected a place. The place selected was a tableland, and there
was a steep bank at the other end. The Coyote set landmarks near
the steep bank and winked to himself, and said, “Now I will have a
whole buffalo to eat,” for at the bottom of this steep place there
was a rock. The Coyote went where the Buffalo stood, and said: “Now
we will run. As soon as we get to the two landmarks I have made we
will run fast. At this place we will close our eyes. When we have
gone a short distance we will open our eyes and see who is in the
lead.” The Buffalo agreed. They began the race, and as they came to
the landmarks, the Coyote said, “Now run your best and close your
eyes.” The Coyote, being on the right side of the Buffalo, closed
his left eye. The Buffalo ran with his eyes closed and jumped over
the steep bank. The Coyote stopped, looked, and saw the Buffalo
lying dead at the bottom of the steep bank.
The Coyote went down and skinned the Buffalo and cut him up. He
then took the meat to a place where there was a creek, and there he
put up a small lodge for himself. He made a fire and roasted some
meat. Then he went out to see if he could see any one. He saw a Fox
coming along. He waited for the Fox. When the Fox came up, the
Coyote said, “My friend, I want you to come to my lodge and pack
water for me.” The Fox said, “I will go with you and pack water for
you.” So they went together and entered the lodge. The Coyote fixed
the buffalo pouch for a bucket, and said, “Fox, you go after water
with this pouch.” The Fox obeyed. Before he got to the creek he had
eaten up the pouch. Four times the Coyote gave the Fox a pouch to
bring water, and every time the Fox would say, “Coyote, as I dipped
water, something came and took away my pouch.” The Coyote was mad,
and he took some coals and threw them into the Fox’s face, so that
the Fox cried and ran off. The Fox told his story to every animal
he met. All the living animals got together, and when the Coyote
was fast asleep they went in and ate all he had in his lodge. When
he woke up he found all his meat gone, and he went away crying.
When you have plenty, do not trust your friends, or they will get
all you have.
FOOTNOTES:
[55] Told by New-Man.
55. THE COYOTE AND THE DANCING CORN.[56]
Two Coyotes were going along, and as they became hungry one of
them said: “Let us go where the people have left their village.
We will find some pounded corn.” As they came to the village they
separated, one going through many lodges, while the other went
another way. The leader came to a lodge, and there he saw pounded
corn, in lumps, running into the mortar. The Coyote ran into the
lodge and begged the lumps of pounded corn to come out, saying that
he was an old man who sang for people in their sacred ceremonies.
The Coyote walked around the fireplace and began to sing. The lumps
of pounded corn came out and danced. The lumps began to dance with
the Coyote. “Close your eyes,” said the Coyote. The lumps had
danced so hard that they had raised a dust, and the Coyote thought
it was time to act. So he ran to the mortar, stuck his head into
the bowl, and became fast. After a time the brother of the Coyote
came, and said, “Wa, what are you doing?” The captive Coyote said:
“I am fast, but I have lots to eat in this bowl. Take an axe and
cut the bowl open.” The other Coyote took the axe and chopped the
mortar open, cutting the other Coyote on the head so that he died.
There was nothing in the mortar. The Coyote went away crying, for
he had killed his brother.
FOOTNOTES:
[56] Told by Little-Crow.
56. THE COYOTE AND THE TURTLE RUN A RACE.[57]
One time a Coyote met a Turtle. The Coyote began to boast of his
swiftness, and the Turtle said, “Why, I can beat you running!” So
the Coyote said, “We will run a race to-morrow.” That night they
parted, and went to their homes, so that they could get ready for
the race the next morning. After the Turtle reached home he began
to worry, and he could not get to sleep, for he knew that the
Coyote could run fast. But the Turtle said to himself: “I will take
him up there and go to the other Turtles, and ask them to assist
me.” So the Turtle went to the other Turtles, and said: “I am about
to run a race with the Coyote. I want you to help me.” He told them
the place where they were to run, and the distance they were to
run. So several Turtles volunteered to go and help the Turtle to
beat the Coyote.
All the Turtles went to the place. They placed one Turtle at the
end of the course; then they placed another one at a certain
distance back of him; then another back of this one, and so on, and
finally the Turtle himself took his stand. Each Turtle carried a
long pole, and hid in the ground.
The next morning the Turtle met the Coyote. The Coyote began to run
around and was happy, for he thought that he was going to beat the
Turtle. The Turtle and the Coyote got ready to start. The Turtle
gave the command to start. The Coyote ran and the Turtle crawled
into his hole. When he got over a little ridge the Coyote saw
the Turtle going ahead of him. Coyote ran and caught up with the
Turtle. The Turtle threw his pole away and crawled into the ground.
When the Coyote got to another knoll, there was the Turtle ahead
of him again. The Coyote caught up with him. The Turtle crawled
into the ground. The Coyote ran, and when he got up to another
hill, there was the Turtle going ahead. The Coyote caught up with
and passed him. At the end, the Turtle was at the goal, and the
Coyote got up, and said, “You have beaten me.” This fine stretch of
running killed the Coyote.
FOOTNOTES:
[57] Told by Standing-Bull.
57. THE COYOTE AND THE STONE RUN A RACE.[58]
The Coyote went up on a high hill, and there he saw a stone. The
Coyote asked of the stone its name. The Stone said, “Run-Fast.”
“A good name,” said the Coyote, “but I can beat you running.” The
stone said, “You will spoil my rest, but if you want to race I
will run with you.” The Coyote said, “All right, I want to race
with you.” So the Stone told the Coyote to carry him to the top of
the hill. The Coyote placed the Stone upon the hill and started
him rolling down the hill. For a time the Coyote ran along side of
him, then passed him. The Stone ran down the hill and caught up
with the Coyote, and rolled upon his back. The Coyote then tried
to shake off the Stone, telling him that he had beaten him and
begging him to get off his back. But the Stone stayed upon the
Coyote’s back. As the Coyote walked along the Stone grew heavier.
It was now towards evening, and as the Coyote walked along he saw
the Bull-Bats fly overhead. He told them to fly lower; that he had
something to tell them. The Bull-Bats flew down. The Coyote told
them that the Stone had been calling them names. He said: “When I
told the Stone that I would tell you he jumped up on my back so
that I could not tell you.” The Bull-Bats said, “We will take the
Stone off.” So the Bull-Bats flew up high in the air, then came
down with a swoop, making a peculiar noise upon the stone and
cracking the Stone. The Bull-Bats kept on flying towards the Stone,
until the Stone split in two.
After the Stone had fallen from the Coyote, the Coyote ran along
making fun of the Bull-Bats, calling them names. He said, “You
spoiled my hair by scattering some of these stones upon my back.”
The Bull-Bats told the Coyote to go his way and they would go
theirs. They separated.
FOOTNOTES:
[58] Told by Cut-Arm.
58. THE COYOTE AND THE ROLLING STONE.[59]
The Coyote was once going along, and he became hungry. He heard a
noise in the distance which sounded like dancing. He went to the
place from where the noise came and there were some men dancing
around the fire. When he came close to the place he saw that these
men were Jack-Rabbits and that they had taken out intestines from
the fire. One took them out, and they began to eat them. The Coyote
asked them where they got the intestines. The Rabbit men told the
Coyote that they would not tell him. The Coyote was very hungry,
and he wanted very much to find out. He made all kinds of promises
to the Rabbits, if they would only tell him, and if they demanded
pay he promised that he would pay them. The leader of the Rabbit
men said, “If you will pay us a good price we will teach you how
the big intestines are made.” The Coyote was willing to pay them.
He stood up, and said: “Grandchildren, I have been very far away,
on the war-path. You can see that I am a warrior by this headdress
that I have on; but, to know the secret of making these intestines
I am willing to part with this eagle war-bonnet.” The Rabbits told
the Coyote to go and get some red willows. The Coyote went and
brought a few red willows, and these the Rabbits threw into the
fire. Then they began to sing a song, and all the Rabbits stood
up and danced around the fire. As the willows burned they turned
slowly into large buffalo intestines. When these were roasted on
the coals the Rabbits told the Coyote to take the intestines off
from the coals and eat them. The Coyote took the long intestines,
and they were so good that he asked the Rabbits to do the same
thing again, for he was still hungry. The Rabbits told the Coyote
to get a good armful of willows. When they were brought and placed
upon the fire all the Rabbits stood up, and the Coyote was among
them. They danced around, and as the willows burned they turned
into large intestines. As each intestine was roasted the Coyote
went and pulled it off the fire. The Rabbits had been eating these
things, so they did not care for any. The Coyote ate them all, and
was filled.
The Coyote then began to look around to see how he might get back
his war-bonnet; for he thought he now knew the secret of making
these long intestines on the coals. He said to the Rabbits: “Let
me take this war-bonnet, and let me show you how it must set upon
the head; let me show you how I wear it.” The leader of the Rabbits
said: “We are afraid of you; you are tricky, and you might get away
with it.” The Coyote said: “I will not get away with it. All that
I want is to show you the way it must be worn.” “Well,” said the
leader, “you may have it, and show us how you wear the bonnet.” As
the Coyote put the war-bonnet upon his head he made a long jump
sidewise, and got away from the Rabbits. The Rabbits got after the
Coyote, but he was too swift for them. The Rabbits said: “You can
go; you will not be able to do the trick four times.” The Coyote
turned around and laughed at the Rabbits.
The Coyote ran far away, and as he was becoming hungry he made a
fire, gathered some red willows, threw them into the fire, and
danced around the fire all alone. He succeeded in making the
buffalo intestines. He did it again, but the third time it began
to fail. The fourth time the red willows burned up into ashes.
They did not turn into intestines for him. The Coyote began to
cry, for he knew that now he must go hungry. He went along, and
after a while he began to have the stomach ache. Deinde ventrem
facere volebat, et, loco idoneo reperto, insedit. Dum defæcabat
leporem circumcursantem vidit, undeque esset miratus est. Quo
magis defæcavit, eo plures lepores vidit. Tum se lepores emittere
repperit. Paulum cunctatus, dixit: “Cogitem quo modo hos lepores
prehendere possim.” Nam lepores occidere volebat. Itaque pulchrum
pallium quod armis trahebat sibi humi sedenti circumposuit. Hoc
saxis gravibus onerato, iterum defæcare incipit. Usque ad vesperum
defæcabat; tandemque exortus locum pallio operuit, eique saxum
imposuit. Deinde ingentem stipitem nactus, lepores quos sub pallio
esse putabat occidit. Pallio autem remoto, nihil nisi excrementum
repperit. Quod cum vidisset, se dixit stultissimum esse.
The Coyote did not know what to do with the robe. He got hold of
the robe and dragged it along until he came to a big Stone. He said
to the Stone: “I am going to make you a present of this robe.” The
Stone was pleased with the robe. The Coyote went away. When the
Coyote was a little way off he saw a big hail-storm coming. He
had nothing to cover himself with. He turned and went back to the
place where the robe was. When he got to the robe it was clean, and
it smelled good. The Coyote said to the Stone: “O, you have made
the robe nice and clean. I came after it.” The Stone never said a
word, and the Coyote stepped over and took his robe again. He went
on. The storm never came near the Coyote. Soon he heard something
coming behind him. He did not pay any attention to what he heard.
By and by he looked back and saw the great, big Stone coming toward
him. The Stone spoke to him, and said, “You, Coyote, stop!” This
scared the Coyote very badly, for he knew that he would be killed
for taking the robe back. The Stone chased the Coyote all the
evening, and the Coyote became very tired and was about to give
out, when he saw two Bull-Bats flying around in the air. He called
to them, and said, “My brothers, this big Stone is after me and
wants to kill me.” The Bull-Bats asked the Coyote why the Stone was
chasing him. The Stone then spoke up and told the Bull-Bats not to
believe anything that the Coyote might tell them. The Coyote begged
the Bull-Bats, and said that the Stone had said something bad about
the Bull-Bats; that the Stone was afraid that he would tell the
Bull-Bats about it; and that was why the Stone was mad and ran
after him and was trying to kill him; that he wanted them to help
him by destroying the Stone. He said: “If you will stop the Stone I
will change the color on your wings and tail.” The Bull-Bats said:
“We will destroy the Stone, but you must first tell us what the
Stone said about us, and what names he called us.” The Coyote said:
“The Stone said that you were the ugliest-looking birds that he
ever saw, because you have short beaks and big mouths, short legs,
and are very dirty.” The Bull-Bats and the Coyote were talking on
the top of a hill, and the Stone was trying to climb the hill, but
could not get to the top.
After the Bull-Bats had accepted the Coyote’s word, one flew up,
and when he came down, he expelled flatus upon the Stone and it
burst in two. Another Bull-Bat split the Stone again, and soon they
had it all broken up. (It is claimed by the people that there was
no stone in the world except this big stone; and when the Bull-Bats
broke the stone it scattered all over the world.) The Coyote
was saved. He got some white clay and put it on the top of the
Bull-Bats’ heads and bodies. The Coyote went on his way, happy.
FOOTNOTES:
[59] Told by Two-Hawks.
59. THE COYOTE AND THE ROLLING STONE.[60]
One time when the Coyote was going along he met a Rabbit. The
Coyote said to the Rabbit: “Let us gamble to-night. Let us gather
dry limbs and make a big fire, that we may look at one another, and
the one who goes to sleep first is to be covered by the other.” The
Rabbit agreed to this. So the Coyote and the Rabbit gathered a lot
of dried limbs and made a big fire. The Coyote sat on one side and
the Rabbit on the other side of the fire, so that they both looked
at one another. The Rabbit went to sleep, but he had his eyes wide
open. Every time the Coyote looked at the Rabbit he saw that his
eyes were wide open, but all this time the Rabbit was asleep. By
morning the Coyote went to sleep. The Rabbit went over and covered
him and then went his way.
The Coyote woke up and was very mad. Profectus, ventrem facere
volebat. Dum defæcavit, multos lepores parvos emisit, qui autem
extemplo evanuerunt. Idcirco viatus est. Itaque pallium suum
deposuit, ut, cum defæcavisset, eo lepores prehendere posset.
Cum igitur in pallio defæcavisset, se lepores eo prehendisse
arbitratus, pallium stipite iterum atque iterum feriebat. Cum autem
pallium aperuisset, nihil nisi excrementum repperit. He dragged
the robe along and gave it to a Stone that was lying near by. When
the Coyote turned around to look at the robe that he had given to
the Stone, he saw that it was clean and white. So he went and took
the robe, and as he dragged it away from the Stone he found that
it was as before. Again he gave the robe to the Stone, and said:
“It is yours; I did not mean to take it.” The Coyote started off
again, but he looked back and he saw that the robe was all painted
in colors and was very beautiful. He went and pulled on it to take
it away, and again it was as at first. Four times the Coyote gave
the robe back to the Stone, and four times he took it away from the
Stone.
At last the Stone moved, for it was angry, and the Stone ran after
the Coyote. The Coyote ran down a hill, crying: “Father and mother
Bull-Bats, this Stone that is running after me called you names! I
told him that I would tell you Bull-Bats, and now he is trying to
kill me!” The Bull-Bats told the Coyote to climb up a tree, where
the young Bull-Bats were. The Bull-Bats expelled flatus on the
Stone and broke it all to pieces. The Bull-Bats, as soon as the
Stone was broken to pieces, flew up high in the sky, and when they
were gone the Coyote saw the young ones in their nest and ate them
up; then he came down from the tree. The Bull-Bats missed their
young ones and they knew that it must have been the Coyote who had
eaten them, for they heard the young ones crying in the Coyote’s
belly. They were mad, and they expelled flatus on the Coyote and
killed him.
Because the Coyote is up to all kinds of mischief he is often killed,
and this is why we so often find a dead Coyote on the prairies.
FOOTNOTES:
[60] Told by Cut-Arm.
60. HOW THE SCALPED-MAN LOST HIS WIFE.[61]
One time the women went into the timber to gather some grapes.
One of the girls went far. She saw some grapes away up in a tree,
so she climbed the tree to get them. While she was up there, a
Scalped-Man found her. The woman cried for help, but the other
women had already gone home. The woman came down from the tree and
went with the Scalped-Man to his den. But before getting to the
den, they had to cross a creek. Before they crossed the creek, the
girl said, “Now, if you will just go in and swim and wash your
head, then I will be your wife and will not be afraid of you.” The
girl made the Scalped-Man dive many times, and while he was diving
she ran away and came to a grapevine, and crawled under it.
When the Scalped-Man came out from the water the girl was missing.
He followed her tracks to the grapevine, and he said, “You are to
come out from there!” But the girl said nothing. After a while he
went on. He kept going through the timber back and forth, until at
last he gave up. The woman got out from the place, and ran home.
She told her people about the Scalped-Man.
FOOTNOTES:
[61] Told by Many-Fox.
61. THE GENEROUS SCALPED-MAN AND HIS BETRAYER.[62]
There was a man from an Arikara village who went hunting, going
west from the village. He saw some antelope in a valley. He crawled
up to them, and just as he was about to shoot he saw one antelope
hold its head up, so that the man knew that it must have seen
something. A mysterious being jumped up by the antelope, and before
the antelope had time to jump the being had struck it and killed
it. This being, who was a Scalped-Man, walked around the antelope,
then took it by the legs, swung it upon his back and carried it off
towards the Bad Lands. The hunter followed. The Scalped-Man came to
a steep bank. He entered the bank and disappeared. The man kept his
eye on the place where the Scalped-Man had disappeared. He came to
the bank, looked in, and saw that there was a door, made of willows
sewed together with sinew. Mud had been put over it and there was
a root sticking out for a handle. By catching hold of the root the
door was opened. The man went in and closed the door. Then he went
in further, where the cave was, and there he saw the Scalped-Man
sitting down by the fireplace. The antelope was lying by the
entrance and the Scalped-Man was sitting down waiting, for he knew
that the man was coming. The man spoke to the Scalped-Man, and
said: “Why do you hold your head down? Speak! I am here. I am not
afraid of you.” The man kept talking to the Scalped-Man until the
Scalped-Man became friendly, then the man sat down. The Scalped-Man
began to cut the meat. The man stayed with the Scalped-Man four
days and nights.
The Scalped-Man told the man that he knew the country all around,
and that he took long journeys into the enemy’s country and had
killed many enemies; that if he would keep his secret of his
living in the Bad Lands he would help him to become a great man
like himself. The man promised, so the Scalped-Man told the man to
remain in his cave while he should go off to the enemy’s country.
The Scalped-Man went off, and was gone for several days. When he
came back he took the man out of his den and told him that he had
brought several ponies for him. The ponies were in a valley. The
man thanked the Scalped-Man. He took the ponies home. The people
were surprised to see the man coming with the ponies, for he
had not been on the war-path, but had been out hunting, as they
thought. The man stayed in the village several days, then he went
out again.
The man went to the Scalped-Man’s cave. The Scalped-Man asked him
what he wanted. The man told him that he wanted many ponies. The
Scalped-Man told him to remain in his cave; that he himself was
going out into the enemy’s country. The Scalped-Man disappeared
and in a few days returned. He gave the man all the ponies he
had brought from the enemy’s country. The man now thanked the
Scalped-Man and drove the ponies to the village. The people knew
that the man had gone off alone on the war-path, and now they were
glad to see him bring many ponies. The people did not know that the
Scalped-Man had helped this man.
When the man had been home with the ponies for several days
he again started on the war-path. He went to the home of the
Scalped-Man and told him that he wanted scalps. The man stayed
right in the Scalped-Man’s cave when he received the scalps. He
fixed them on sticks. The man now returned to his village, singing
war songs. The people heard the songs and knew that he must have
killed the enemy. When they went out to meet him, sure enough, he
had several scalps hung upon poles. There were dances all through
the village on account of the scalps.
In a few days the man went out again. He told the Scalped-Man that
he wanted some more scalps. The man remained in the cave while the
Scalped-Man went off into the enemy’s country. In a few days the
Scalped-Man came back with the scalps. The man received the scalps.
He stayed in the cave while he fixed them on poles. At this time
the man told the Scalped-Man that several men wanted to join him on
the war-path. The Scalped-Man said: “Very well, come with them and
stop near this place. Leave them in a hollow and come into my cave,
and we will go together. I shall be glad to scout for your people.”
When the man went home there was again rejoicing in the village and
scalp dances were had in the village.
In a few days the man made it known to the people that he was about
to go on the war-path. The old men flocked to him, for they knew
that he was very lucky capturing ponies and bringing scalps. When
the war-party started out the man who was in the lead led them to
the cave of the Scalped-Man. He told the warriors to remain in
a valley, while he went a short distance to look for some deer.
The man went to the Bad Lands to the cave of the Scalped-Man. He
entered the cave. He found the Scalped-Man sitting there. They
started on their journey, but the Scalped-Man would not join their
party, but he went on ahead. The Scalped-Man led them to the
village, helped to kill the enemy and capture ponies. The war-party
returned with scalps and many ponies.
The friend of the Scalped-Man was afraid that the people would find
out about the Scalped-Man, so he thought it was about time that
the Scalped-Man should be caught; for the Scalped-Man had not been
really scalped, but had been wounded a little on the top of his
head, and so he had stayed away from the people and had become
accustomed to stay by himself. The friend of the Scalped-Man was
afraid that if the people found out that the Scalped-Man had done
all the killing and capturing of the ponies he would be looked upon
as a coward, for he was now a chief for having done all his great
acts. So this man invited a lot of men in the night and told them
that it was his intention that morning to go out and capture a
Scalped-Man who dwelt in the Bad Lands; that this Scalped-Man was
the one who was assisting him to get the ponies and kill people.
The men in the village thought this very wrong and did not want to
do it. But the man was determined.
The next morning the people went out. They surrounded the bank
where the Scalped-Man lived and the man went into his cave; but the
Scalped-Man was gone, for as they were holding their meeting in
the night the Scalped-Man had come to the man’s lodge to listen to
the council that they were having, for each night when the man was
home, the Scalped-Man watched around his lodge to see if he would
betray him. At this particular council the Scalped-Man had listened
to all their plans about catching him. So when the Scalped-Man
returned into his cave that night he picked up his things, moved
them away from that country to some other place, so that after
that, when the men went out to capture this Scalped-Man he was
gone. The Scalped-Man was never seen any more.
FOOTNOTES:
[62] Told by Elk.
62. THE SCALPED-MAN.[63]