Indians of North America -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Religion; Modoc mythology
Kûlta’s wife knew what the women were doing to her brother. She took a
basket and followed him. When he threw away his quiver, she was there
behind him; she picked up the quiver and put it in her basket. She felt
badly. She cried hard and thought: “Poor brother, they will kill you.”
The young man said: “There are too many beads on my moccasins; they are
so heavy I can hardly step.” He threw away one of the moccasins, and
called: “Come on, Ilyúyu!” (He didn’t see his sister, and Ilyúyu didn’t
see her.) Soon he pulled off the other moccasin and threw it away. He
threw away his belt. Ilyúyu picked it up and tried to carry it in his
mouth. He dragged it a while, then dropped it. After a time the young
man said: “What have I got on that is so heavy?” He took off his beaded
shirt and threw it away. When Ilyúyu cried, his master called: “Come
on, Ilyúyu, I have another shirt at home.” He threw away his beaded
leggings; then he was naked. Ilyúyu was crying. “Come on, Ilyúyu,” said
his master. Soon he pulled off one arm and threw it away. Ilyúyu tried
to drag the arm along with his teeth, but his master called: “Come on,
Ilyúyu, come on!” and he left it. His sister put it in her basket. Soon
he said: “I wonder what is so heavy.” And he threw away the second arm.
He pulled off his legs; then he was only a body and head. He went on a
little way, then said: “I wonder what is so heavy.” His body fell off,
and he was only a head. He became Núsdilausniyas (Rolling Head) and
could travel fast. He crossed a mountain at a bound, then rolled along
in the air. He had big eyes and long hair that waved behind him.
When he got to the river near his home, he struck the ground, and said:
“Dum! dum!” Then he called in a loud voice: “Mother, come and take me
across!” “Where are you?” asked his mother; she couldn’t see him.
“I am here waiting. Come and get me!” When she didn’t come, he got mad,
flew across the river and came down in the house: “Dum! dum!” Then he
flew at the people, hit them, and killed them.
Ilyúyu was crying; the river was swift and he couldn’t cross. Soon the
sister came. She found a canoe, crossed the river, and went to the
house. She looked in through the smoke hole and saw the Head eating the
body of her mother. She was terribly scared. She ran to the village to
tell the people; she knew that after the Head had eaten her father and
mother, it would fly to the village and kill everybody there.
The Head felt dust scatter in at the smoke hole, and knew that somebody
was on the top of the house. It went out, saw tracks, and followed the
woman. When Ilyúyu saw his master, just a great bloody Head, he felt so
badly and was so afraid that he ran off to the mountains and wandered
around, crying all the time.
When the sister told the people that her brother had turned to a
man-eater, the two oldest women in the village said to them: “You must
paint your faces with the pitch out of cedar trees, and be strong;
maybe we can save you.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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