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
"Here, my father-in-law, take a smoke. I am only a young man. You are
old, you are wise, you know everything. You say it is best for us to
take a smoke. I am young, do not know much, but I think this pipe and
tobacco are for talk. Smoke with me."
Sas took the pipe, but when Tulchuherris let go the old man could not
hold it. It was slipping and falling. When he tried to catch it, it
fell on his arm, threw him, and held him down.
Sas struggled to push the pipe off his arm, but had not strength
enough. Tulchuherris looked for a moment, then reached out his hand,
picked up the pipe, and asked,--
"Father-in-law, what is the matter? Take a good smoke. This is
Tulchuherris's pipe."
Sas could not lift the pipe. Tulchuherris held it while the old man
was smoking. When Sas drew in the smoke and swallowed it, it hurt him
inside. The old man was choking. He fell on the ground, fell almost
into the fire. His breath was taken from him. Tulchuherris put the
pipe aside.
"Oh, help me up, help me, my son-in-law," called Sas.
Tulchuherris helped him to rise, and then sat with the girls again.
"My old father, Sas," said his elder daughter, "what is the matter?
You have wanted this long time to see a man with strong arms. Why not
talk now with this one? You have been waiting a long time for such a
man."
While they were sitting there, Winishuyat said: "My brother, look out
for the old woman. She is going to turn--be on your guard!"
Tulchuherris was ready. The old woman had not looked around since he
came. She had been sitting motionless. Now she began to turn slowly,
and Tulchuherris watched her. He sat with his right hand doubled up,
and before she could look into his eyes he snapped two flint
finger-nails at her, sent one nail into each of her eyes and put it
out. She fell dead and rolled into the fire.
Night came now, and Tulchuherris lay down on the bed prepared by Sas's
two daughters. They took their places, one on each side of him.
He never took out Winishuyat, he never let any one know of him. As
Tulchuherris lay on his back, he saw something over his head, hanging
from the roof of the house. Two obsidian knives were hanging together
by a very slender string of the inner bark of maple. Tulchuherris fell
asleep and slept until midnight. He was roused then by Winishuyat, who
said to him,--
"Oh, my brother, wake up. The string holding the knives is ready to
break. Wake up, my brother, wake up!"
Tulchuherris woke up.
"Turn over! turn over!" said Winishuyat.
Tulchuherris turned in a flash. That instant the knives fell, struck
the ground just at his back, and were broken to pieces, both knives at
once.
This was another way of killing people. Strangers always slept soundly
on that bed with Sas's daughters, were struck while asleep by two
knives in the heart, and died the same moment.
Next morning after the knives fell, Sas rose and said,--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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