eir way.

"When in the most dangerous part of the pass the boys pretended to be very
much alarmed, and asked to be permitted to walk between her and the
mountain side. At first she was suspicious, but they seemed now to be so
cowardly and afraid that she thought they were not able to do her any harm,
so she walked on the outer edge of the pass and let them have the inside,
and also allowed them to put their hands on her as though to steady
themselves. When they came to the most dangerous spot, where it was so
narrow that even a mountain lion had to be careful, they both suddenly drew
their magic sticks and, giving her a great shove, sent her over the side of
the narrow rocky ledge and down she fell--to be dashed to pieces thousands
of feet below.

"With a shout of triumph the two boys carefully pushed on and, finding the
den, quickly killed the cubs and cut off the right forepaw from each one to
carry home.

"From this high pass they could now see the canyon where grew the good
wood for which they were seeking. They also saw the lodge of the monster
giant who guarded the narrow path that led to it. They saw by its size that
he must be an enormous creature, and so they looked to see that their
arrows and magic sticks were all in good order and handy for use.

"The great giant had heard their shout of triumph when they had destroyed
the mountain lioness and it made him very angry, for he hated any noise or
disturbance; his name, Nikoochis, which means solitude, indicated this.

"When he saw the small boys he was at first inclined to laugh in derision
at them, but when they had come near enough to shoot their magic arrows at
him he soon began to roar with the stinging pain they gave him.

"In vain he tried to catch the active little fellows; he was so big and
clumsy, and they were so quick in their movements, that it was an utter
impossibility for him to get his hands upon them.

"Then he began tearing up great rocks and stones and tried to crush them by
hurling these at them. Here the boys' father, the sun, came to their help,
and he shone so fiercely into the eyes of the great monster that he was
unable to see very well, and the boys easily kept out of the way of the
rocks thrown at them.

[Illustration: "They both threw their magic sticks."]

"The monster was big and fat and unaccustomed to exertion, and he was soon
tired out. Indeed he was so big that the arrows of the boys seemed only
like pins and needles st