Creation Myths of Primitive America: In relation to the Religious History and Mental Development of MankindCurtin, Jeremiah
Religion
Creation Myths of Primitive America: In relation to the Religious History and Mental Development of Mankind
Curtin, Jeremiah
Creation -- Mythology; Indian mythology -- North America; Indians of North America -- Folklore
The first ten, the smooth men, had good sense; the second ten were
inferior; the ninth and tenth of the second ten were very bad. The
first ten took each only one mouthful; of the second ten, the first
took one mouthful, the second two, the third three, and so on to the
tenth, who took ten mouthfuls. After that they sat back and made ready
to go out.
"What are we to do?" asked the first ten. "We have nothing to hunt
with."
Kele brought out bows and quivers with arrows, and gave them to each;
gave five ropes to them also, ropes of grass fibre. "You are armed
now," said Kele; and he showed them where to set snares for deer.
They went far down to the foot of the mountain and set snares. The
ten smooth brothers stood on the mountain top; the second ten, who
were rough, drove the deer. "You must shout so that we can hear you
all the time," said the smooth brothers. Toward evening the smooth
brothers saw deer in the snares. The smooth ten took the bodies, the
best of the game; the rough ten the legs, ears, horns, all the poor
parts. The smooth ten took the best meat to the house; the rough ten
made a great uproar--they had little sense. The two sisters cooked
roots and venison for all.
Next morning Kele made a big fire of manzanita wood. "Be up, my boys,"
called he. "Go and swim." That day the twenty stayed at home, and the
sisters went for roots.
They lived this way a long time, the brothers hunting, the sisters
digging roots and cooking, till at last the sisters wished to see
other persons besides their brothers. One day when they went for roots
they sat down on the mountain slope. "What are we to do?" said one
sister; "we wish to see people, we see no one now but our brothers and
father."
That evening, when all had lain down, the elder sister went to Kele
and sat near him. "My father," said she, "I wish to know my name."
"Your name is Klereu Lulimet," said Kele; "your sister's name is Pili
Lulimet."
She told her sister what their names were. Both liked the names, and
were glad to have them. Every day the men sweated and swam, killed
deer and snared them. The sisters dug lily roots and cooked them.
One time instead of digging roots they went high on the mountain side
and sat there, sat looking westward. They could see very far, and
things seemed right there before them, though away off near the edge
of the great western water.
This was the first time that the sisters had a chance to see far. Till
that day they had only a mountain slope or a forest opening in front
of them; now they had the whole country to look at. Just after midday
they saw a man going northward, going slowly.
"What a nice man that is! Look at him," said one sister to the other.
He stopped all at once, seemed to sit down and disappear through the
earth. That day they saw him no more.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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