"Stay your feet with patience," said the fathers. For some amongst them
heard a Raven who was wandering about the edge of the town at break of
day seeking food in the dirt and refuse, and they bethought themselves.
"Look, now! There is Heavy-nose, whose beak never fails to find the
substance of seed itself, however so little or well hidden it be.
Surely he well must know then, of the maiden-mothers thereof. Let us
call him." So they bade the warrior-priests go forth once more. Forth
to the river side went the priests. "We carry no pricking quills," said
they, raising their hands all weaponless, "and, O, Black-banded father,
we seek your aid; for look now, the mother-maidens of seed whose
substance is the food alike of thy people and our people, have fled
away whither neither our grandfather the Eagle, nor yet his younger
brother the Falcon, can trace them; and we pray thee to aid us or give
us counsel of guidance."
"_Ka! ka!_" cried the Raven. "Nay, now; much too hungry am I to go
abroad fasting on business for ye and thy kind. Ye are stingy! Here
have I been since ever perching time, striving to win a throatful, but
ye pick thy bones and lick thy bowls too clean for the like of that, be
sure!"
"But come in then, thou poor grandfather. Surely we will give thee food
to eat; yea, and a cigarette to smoke with all due observance!"
"Say ye so?" said the Raven, ruffling his collar and opening his mouth
so wide with a lusty _kwa-la-ka_, that well he might have swallowed
his own head. "Go ye before, then," said he, and he followed them
closely into the court of dancers.
Not ill to look upon was he, for upon his shoulders were bands of
cotton, white, and his back was blue and gleaming as the tresses of a
maiden dancer in sunlight. When the warriors had spoken to the fathers,
the master priest of them, rising, came forward and greeted the Raven,
bidding him sit and smoke.
"Ha! there is corn in this, else why the stalk thereof?" said the Raven
as, taking the cane cigarette of the far-spaces, he noticed the joint
thereof. Therefore, forthwith, as he had seen the master do, so did he,
only more greedily. He sucked in such a throatful of the smoke, fire
and all, that it well nigh strangled him, and he coughed and grew giddy
and sick to such a pass that the smoke, all hot and stinging, went
through every part of him, and filled all his feathers, making even
his brown eyes bluer and blacker in rings! It is not to be wondered
at, this blueness of flesh, blackness of dress and tearfulness, yea
and skinniness, of eye which we see in his kindred today. Nay, nor is
it matter of wonder, either, that for all that, they are as greedy
of corn-food as ever, for look now--no sooner had the old Raven
recovered than he espied one of the ears of corn half hidden under the
mantle-covers of the trays. He leapt from his sitting place laughing
(as they always do when they find anything, these ravens), then
catching up the ear of corn, he made off with it over the heads of the
people and the tops of the houses, saying, "Ha! ha! in this wise and in
no other meseems will ye find thy Seed maidens!"
Nevertheless, after some absence, he came back, saying, "A sharp eye
have I for the flesh of the maidens, but of their breathing-beings,
who might see them, ye dolts, save by help of the Father of Dawn Mist
himself, whose breath makes others of breath seen as itself;" whereupon
he flew away again kawkling.