Indians of North America -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Religion; Modoc mythology
Tohós had a great red lump on her forehead. The little boy laughed at
her, and said: “That looks like a boil. It don’t look well. I don’t
like to see it. People who come hereafter may look as you do.” He took
his fire-drill and pressed the swelling downwards. From that time fowls
and beasts do not carry their young in their foreheads.
“Oh, my nephew,” said his aunt, “what have you done? Your uncle is a
bad man; he will be mad and maybe he will kill you.”
Wámanik was off hunting; when his bowstring broke he knew what had
happened at home. He let himself out full length, then made a circle
around the world and began to press in trees, rocks, mountains,
everything. When he began to press his own house, the elder nephew went
on the top of it, lay down, drew his bowstring, snapped it, and sent an
arrow into Wámanik’s head and killed him. Then he cut his body into
small pieces. Each piece turned to a rock, and the rocks made a great
mountain. The spirit of Wámanik came out and was a snake. The nephew
said: “You will be of no use; only dirty people will eat you.”
When the boys started toward the east, Tohós’ spirit followed them a
while, then said: “My nephews, tell me where you are going and when you
are coming back.”
“We are not coming back,” said the boys. “It is a lonesome world. We
have no father or mother; our aunt has killed them. We don’t want to
live here any longer. We shall never come back; we are going to where
the sun comes up.” And they went on.
“I am dry,” said the little boy; “I want to drink.”
“I don’t know this country,” answered the elder boy. “I don’t know
where the springs are.” As they traveled they came to a place where
water flowed out of two holes in a rock. They drank there and the elder
brother named the place Gádûm (Stone Springs). While they were drinking
a little snake ran into the spring. The younger boy laughed and said to
the snake: “In later time, if strangers come here to drink, you and
your people will show yourselves and scare them.”
They started on, but hadn’t gone far when the little boy wanted water
to drink. The elder boy shot his arrow off toward the east, but he saw
no water. He shot a second arrow and a third; then he shot through a
mountain and into a lake, and water came through the mountain and made
a spring that he called Ktsiskăsalkis. (People have to crawl in under
the rocks to drink from it.)
They crossed a high mountain and came to a lake. “I am hungry,” said
the little boy.
“Sit down, and I will go into the water and get tuls [9] for you,” said
his brother.
While they were eating the grass, they saw a catfish. When the elder
brother shot at it, a great many fish came up out of the water. He
caught some and cooked them. The place where the boys sat while eating
is called Eŭdélis, and to this day a great many catfish are caught in
the river near there.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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