The Iroquois tell this story about them: There were once seven little
Indian boys who were great friends. Every evening they used to come to a
little mound to dance and feast. They would first eat their corn and
beans, and then one of their number would sit upon the mound and sing,
while the others danced around the mound. One time they thought they would
have a much grander feast than usual, and each agreed upon what he would
bring for it. But their parents would not give them what they wanted, and
the little lads met at the mound without their feast. The singer took his
place and began his song, while his companions started to dance. As they
danced they forgot their sorrows and "their heads and hearts grew
lighter," until at last they flew up into the air. Their parents saw them
as they rose, and cried out to them to return; but up and up they went
until they were changed into the seven stars. Now, one of the Pleiades is
dimmer than the rest, and they say that it is the little singer, who is
homesick and pale because he wants to return but cannot.
A Story Of Glooskap.
The Algonkin tribes of Nova Scotia, Canada, and New England had a great
many stories about a great hero named Glooskap. They believed he was a
great magician and could do wonders. In stories about him it is common to
have him strive with other magicians to see which one can do the greatest
wonders and overpower the other. Glooskap always comes out ahead in these
strange contests.
Usually Glooskap is good to men, but only when they are true and honest.
He used to give people who visited him their wish. But if they were bad,
their wish would do them far more harm than good.
One of the Glooskap stories tells of how he fought with some giant
sorcerers at Saco. There was an old man who had three sons and a daughter.
They were all giants and great magicians. They did many wicked things, and
killed and ate every one they could get at. It happened that when he was
young, Glooskap had lived in this family, but then they were not bad. When
he heard of their dreadful ways he made up his mind to go and see if it
was all true, and if it were so, to punish them. So he went to the house.
The old man had only one eye, and the hair on one half of his head was
gray. The first thing Glooskap did was to change himself so that he looked
exactly like the old man; no one could tell which was which. And they sat
talking together. The sons, hearing them, drew near to kill the stranger,
but could not tell which was their father, so they said, “He must be a
great magician, but we will get the better of him.” So the sister giant
took a whale’s tail, and cooking it, offered it to the stranger. Glooskap
took it. Then the eldest brother came in, and seizing the food, said,
“This is too good for a beggar like you.”
Glooskap said, “What is given to me is mine: I will take it.” And he
simply _wished_ and it returned.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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