How The Raven Died: 1902, From "Wolfville Nights" — John Shaqi
How The Raven Died: 1902, From "Wolfville Nights"Lewis, Alfred Henry
General
How The Raven Died: 1902, From "Wolfville Nights"
Lewis, Alfred Henry
Short stories
"'Then the Bear an' the Squaw-who-has-dreams made a fire an' smoked
an' laid a plot. The Bear did not know where to find the powder of the
whirlwind which the Raven kept always in a secret place. But the Bear
told the Squaw-who-has-dreams that she should marry the Raven an' watch
until she found where the powder of the whirlwind was kept in its secret
place; an' then she was to give some to the Raven, an' he, too, would
be twisted an' die. There was a great danger, though; the Raven
would, after the one day when they were wedded, want to kill the
Squaw-who-has-dreams. So to protect her, the Bear told her she
must begin to tell the Raven the moment she was married to him the
Story-that-never-ends. Then, because the Raven was more cur'ous than
even he was cruel, he would put off an' put off giving the powder of
the whirlwind to the Squaw-who-has-dreams, hoping to hear the end of the
Story-that-never-ends. Meanwhile the Squaw-who-has-dreams was to watch
the Raven until she found the powder of the whirlwind in its secret
place.
"'Then the wise Bear gave the Squaw-who-has-dreams a bowlful of words
as seed, so she might plant them an' raise a crop of talk to tell
the Story-that-never-ends. An' the Squaw-who-has-dreams planted the
seed-words, an' they grew an' grew, an' she gathered sixteen bundles
of talk an' brought them to her wigwam. After that she put beads in her
hair, an' dyed her lips red, an' rubbed red on her cheeks, an' put on a
new blanket; an' when the Raven saw her, he asked her to marry him. So
they were wedded; an' the Squaw-who-has-dreams went to the teepee of the
Raven an' was his wife.
"'But the Raven was old an' cunning like _Yah-mee-kee_, the Beaver, an'
he said, "He is not wise who keeps a squaw too long!" An' with that he
thought he would kill the Squaw-who-has-dreams the next day with the
powder of the whirlwind. But the Squaw-who-has-dreams first told the
Raven that she hated _When-dee-goo_, the Giant; an' that she should not
love the Raven until he had killed _When-dee-goo_. She knew the Giant
was too big an' strong for the Raven to kill with his lance, an' that he
must get his powder of the whirlwind; she would watch him an' learn its
secret place. The Raven said he would kill the Giant as the sun went
down next day.
"'Then the Squaw-who-has-dreams told the Raven the first of the
Story-that-never-ends an' used up one bundle of talk; an' when the story
ended for that night, the Squaw-who-has-dreams was saying: "An' so, out
of the lake that was red as the sun came a great fish that was green,
with yellow wings, an' it walked also with feet, an' it came up to me
an' said:" But then she would tell no more that night nor could the
Raven, who was crazy with cur'osity, prevail on her. "I must now sleep
an' dream what the green fish with the yellow wings said," was the reply
of the Squaw-who-has-dreams, an' she pretended to slumber. So the Raven,
because he was cur'ous, put off her death.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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