nd beautiful
island. He found a canoe of shining white stone, tied to the shore. He
was now sure that he had come the right path, for the aged man had told
him of this. There were also shining paddles. He immediately entered
the canoe, and took the paddles in his hands, when to his joy and
surprise, on turning round, he beheld the object of his search in
another canoe, exactly its counterpart in everything. She had exactly
imitated his motions, and they were side by side. They at once pushed
out from shore and began to cross the lake. Its waves seemed to be
rising, and at a distance looked ready to swallow them up; but just as
they entered the whitened edge of them they seemed to melt away, as if
they were but the images of waves. But no sooner was one wreath of foam
passed, than another, more threatening still, rose up. Thus they were
in perpetual fear; and what added to it, was the _clearness of the
water_, through which they could see heaps of beings who had perished
before, and whose bones lay strewed on the bottom of the lake. The
Master of Life had, however, decreed to let them pass, for the actions
of neither of them had been bad. But they saw many others struggling
and sinking in the waves. Old men and young men, males and females of
all ages and ranks, were there; some passed, and some sank. It was only
the little children whose canoes seemed to meet no waves. At length,
every difficulty was gone, as in a moment, and they both leaped out on
the happy island. They felt that the very air was food. It strengthened
and nourished them. They wandered together over the blissful fields,
where everything was formed to please the eye and the ear. There were
no tempests--there was no ice, no chilly winds--no one shivered for the
want of warm clothes: no one suffered for hunger--no one mourned the
dead. They saw no graves. They heard of no wars. There was no hunting
of animals; for the air itself was their food. Gladly would the young
warrior have remained there forever, but he was obliged to go back for
his body. He did not see the Master of Life, but he heard his voice in
a soft breeze. "Go back," said this voice, "to the land from whence you
come. Your time has not yet come. The duties for which I made you, and
which you are to perform, are not yet finished. Return to your people
and accomplish the duties of a good man. You will be the ruler of your
tribe for many days. The rules you must observe will be told you by my
m