So Coyote explained his plan....
So Coyote lay as dead, and all the Hares and small animals saw him lying
in the river, and rejoiced that he was dead. The Hares decided to go in
a body and see the dead Coyote. Rejoicing over his death, they struck
him with their hands and kicked him. There were crowds of Hares and they
decided to have a great dance. Now and then a dancing Hare would stamp
upon Coyote who lay as if dead. During the dance the Hares clapped their
hands over their mouth and gave a whoop like a war-whoop.
Then Coyote rose quickly and took two clubs which the ka-wate had given
him, and together they killed all of the Hares. There was a great number
and they were piled up like stones.
Coyote said, "Where shall I find fire to cook the hares? Ah," he said,
pointing across to a high rock, "that rock gives good shade and it is
cool. I will find fire and cook my meat in the shade of that rock."
So they carried all the hares to that point and Coyote made a large fire
and threw them into it. When he had done this he was very warm and
tired. He lay down close to the rock in the shade.
After a while he said to Ka-wate, "We will run a race. The one who wins
will have all the hares."
She said, "How could I beat you? Your feet are so much larger than
mine."
Coyote said, "I will allow you the start of me." He made a torch of the
inner shreds of cedar bark and wrapped it with yucca thread and lighted
it. Then he tied this torch to the end of his tail. He did this to see
that the ka-wate did not escape him.
Ka-wate started first, but when out of sight of Coyots, she slipped into
the house of Badger. Then Coyote started with the fire attached to his
tail. Wherever he touched the grass, he set fire to it. But Ka-wate
hurried back to the rock, carried all the hares on top except four tiny
ones, and then climbed up on the rock.
Coyote was surprised not to overtake her. He said, "She must be very
quick. How could she run so fast?" Then he returned to the rock, but did
not see her.
He was tired and sat down in the shade of the rock. "Why does n't she
come?" he said. "Perhaps she will not come before night, her feet are so
small."
Ka-wate sat on the rock above and heard all he said. She watched him
take a stick and look into the mound for the hares. He pulled out a
small one which he threw away. But the second was smaller than the
first. Then a third and a fourth, each tiny, and all he threw away. "I
do not care for the smaller ones," he said. "There are so many here, I
will not eat the little ones." But he hunted and hunted in the mound of
ashes for the hares. All were gone.
He said, "That woman has robbed me." Then he picked up the four little
ones and ate them. He looked about for Ka-wate but did not see her
because he did not look up. Then as he was tired and lay down to rest,
he looked up and saw her, with the cooked hares piled beside her.
Coyote was hungry. He begged her to throw one down. She threw a very
small one. Then Coyote became angry. And he was still more angry because
he could not climb the rock. She had gone where he could not go.
How the Rattlesnake Learned to Bite
Pima (Arizona)
After people and the animals were created, they all lived together.
Rattlesnake was there, and was called Soft Child because he was so soft
in his motions. The people liked to hear him rattle and little rest did
he get because they continually poked and scratched him so that he would
shake the rattles in his tail. At last Rattlesnake went to Elder Brother
to ask help. Elder Brother pulled a hair from his own lip, cut it in
short pieces, and made it into teeth for Soft Child.
"If any one bothers you," he said, "bite him."
That very evening Ta-api, Rabbit, came to Soft Child as he had done
before and scratched him. Soft Child raised his head and bit Rabbit.
Rabbit was angry and scratched again. Soft Child bit him again. Then
Rabbit ran about saying that Soft Child was angry and had bitten him.
Then he went to Rattlesnake again, and twice more he was bitten.
The bites made Rabbit very sick. He asked for a bed of cool sea sand.
Coyote was sent to the sea for the cool, damp sand. Then Rabbit asked
for the shade of bushes that he might feel the cool breeze. But at last
Rabbit died. He was the first creature which had died in this new world.
Then the people were troubled because they did not know what to do with
the body of Rabbit. One said, "If we bury him, Coyote will surely dig
him up."