thought that
Wewillemuck was too small to carry him over, but his grandfather told
him to seat himself between his horns, and when he wished
Wewillemuck[18] to go faster he should tap him on the horns. The
grandfather then gave his grandson a small bow and arrows, and put him
on the snail's back between his horns.
[Footnote 16: The ants assisted Black Cat in many ways. They were also
friendly to Leux, and on one occasion are said to have gathered the
bones and fragments of the "Merry God" together and restored his life.
Whether in the present instance they tried to keep the tree upright by
piling the earth about its trunk or not, the narrator does not say.]
[Footnote 17: Possibly the gnawing of the Beaver is the ripple of the
waves around the base of the tree.]
[Footnote 18: Mrs. Brown has identified Wewillemuck as the snail. Some
of the Indians say that it is a large lizard like an alligator. The
bark picture of this creature, made by Noel Josephs, is that of a
nondescript difficult to identify.]
As they were crossing the channel, Wewillemuck said to the Black Cat,
"When we get near shore tell me." But Black Cat gave Wewillemuck a
sharp rap on the horns, and the snail jumped forward and went so far
that both went a far distance inland. Wewillemuck said, "Why did you
not tell me we were near the land? Now I cannot get back to the water
again." But Black Cat took his small bow and arrows, and with them
carried Wewillemuck back to the water. So pleased was he that he said,
"Scrape from my horns some fine dust, and, whatever you wish, put this
powder upon it and it is yours." So Black Cat scraped off some powder
from the horns of Wewillemuck.
The Raven was told to build a wigwam for Cooloo, who was chief. Pogump
(Black Cat) went to see the chief, and killed him with the powder.
Black Cat went to see Pookjinsquess; he scattered a ring of powder
around her wigwam, and then set it on fire. It blazed up and ignited
the wigwam, burning up the old woman Pookjinsquess; whose ashes, blown
about by the winds, made the mosquitoes.[19]
[Footnote 19: In this manner he obtains his revenge. Dr. Boas tells me
he has heard a similar story of the origin of the mosquitoes on the
West Coast.]
Leland, in his version of this story, represents the Black Cat as
identical with Glooscap,[20] and the Sable as a boy who had a flute by
which he could entice to himself all the animals. The story of the
sticks is similar, but the cuttin
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