Fairy tales -- Canada; Folklore -- Canada; Indians of North America -- Canada -- Folklore
When he reached his home his wives were very glad to see him back, and
they at once brought him water, the only food they had. But he laughed
them to scorn, and threw the water in their faces and said, "Oh,
foolish women, I do not want water; it is not food for a great man
like me. I have had a good meal of meat stew and corn bread and
cooked vegetables and luscious ripe fruit. I know where much food is
to be found, but I alone know. I can find food when all others fail,
for I am a great man. Go forth and invite the Chief and all the people
to a feast which I shall provide for them to-morrow night--a feast for
all the land, for my food never grows less." They were all amazed when
they heard his story, and the thought of his good meal greatly added
to their hunger. But they went out and summoned all the tribe to a
feast as he had told them.
The next night all the people gathered for the feast, for the news of
it had spread through all the land. They had taken no water that day,
for they wished to eat well, and they were very hungry. They were as
hungry as wild beasts in search of food. The Spider Man was very glad
because the people praised him, and he proudly brought in his bag of
pots. The people all waited hungrily and eagerly. But when he
uncovered the first pot there was no food there; he uncovered the
second pot, but there was no food there; he uncovered all the pots,
but not a bit of food was in any of them. They were all empty, and in
the bottom of each was a great gaping hole. Now it had happened in
this way. When the humped man, the Star-fairy, had given the pots to
the Spider Man, he knew well that the Spider Man would disobey his
orders and that he would open the pots before he reached his home. He
chuckled to himself, for he knew that now he could take vengeance on
the web-weaver who had injured him. So when the Spider Man had left
the pots among the trees, the humped man used his magic power and made
holes in the pots, and the charm of the food was broken and all the
food disappeared. When the people saw the empty pots they thought they
had been purposely deceived. The remains of the food and the smell of
stew and of fruit still clung to the pots. They thought the Spider Man
had eaten all the food himself. So in their great hunger and their
rage and their disappointment they fell upon him and beat him and bore
him to the ground, while the humped man with the lamp at his back
hiding behind the trees looked on and laughed in his glee. Then the
people split the Spider Man's arms to the shoulders, and his legs to
the thighs, so that he had eight limbs instead of four. And the humped
man--the star-fairy named Fire-fly--came forth from behind the trees
and standing over the fallen Spider Man he said, "Henceforth because
of your cruelty to the star-people you will always crawl on eight
legs, and you will have a fat round belly because of the water you
have drunk; and sometimes you will live on top of the water. But you
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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