THE DESERTED VILLAGE

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A GRANDFATHER and grandson lived together. They were the only persons left of a large nation. All their relatives and friends had been killed.

When the boy was old enough, his grandfather made him a bow and arrows and taught him to hunt. He killed small animals at first, but after a while he killed a deer. Each time he brought home game his grandfather danced and rejoiced, and mentioned the name of the game,

The two lived happily together till the grandson was a young man, then one day his grandfather said to him, "You are old enough to marry. I would like to have a woman here to cook. You must go South and find a wife. For an ordinary man it is a long journey but you will go quickly," and giving his grandson a pair of moccasins, he sent him off.

About midday the young man came to an opening in the woods. In the opening was a large village. He went from one house to another; all were empty. Then he went to the long house and looking in saw, on a bench, the body of a young woman. The corpse was ornamented with beautiful beads.

The young man thought, "I'll take some of those beads, they will be nice for my wife, when I find one."

He took what beads he wanted and when outside, said to himself, "I'll go home now and look for a wife some other time."

He started northward, as he thought, and ran along swiftly.

After a while he came to a clearing and to his surprise found it was the same one he had left. Looking at the village and the long house, he thought, "I must have made a mistake."

He took bearings again and hurried toward home. Again he came out in the village.

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"It must be that woman brings me here because I have taken her beads. I'll give them back to her."

He went to the long house, put the beads on to the body, and again started for home. On the way he killed a bear and skinned it. Taking some of the meat he rolled it up in the skin, made a pack and carried it along, running as fast as he could, hoping to reach home before night.

At night he came out in the same opening.

"This is strange," thought he, "I'll have to spend the night in the long house."

He kindled a fire, cooked his meat, spread out the bear skin and sat down to eat. As he ate he threw the bones behind him; soon he heard crunching and gnawing.

"Maybe a hungry ghost does that," thought he, "I'll give it some meat."

He threw pieces of meat behind him and heard them eaten.

After he had eaten enough, he crawled under the bear skin to sleep. Soon something began to pull the bear skin from his feet. He sprang up, stirred the fire and put on more wood. All was quiet, and he lay down again. After a while, when the fire had grown dim, something crawled over his body, came up to his breast. He threw his arms around the thing, wrapped it in the bearskin and sprang to his feet. A terrible struggle began. The two wrestled from near the fire to the end of the long house and then down along the other side. When near the place they had started from, the gray of daylight came. That minute what seemed to be a body, dropped to the floor and lay still. The young man lashed the bearskin around it closely, left it on the floor and cooked and ate his breakfast.

He was curious to know what was in the skin, for he thought it must be something connected with the woman. Opening the skin carefully he found only a piece of clotted blood about the size of his fist.

He heated water, dissolved the blood, and, with a wooden ladle he whittled out with his flint knife, he poured some of the blood into the woman's mouth. It went down her throat. Again and again he poured. At last the woman's breast began to move. When he had given her half the blood she breathed.

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When she had taken it all, she said, "I am hungry."

The young man pounded corn, made thin gruel and fed her. Soon she was able to sit up and in a little while she was well.

She said, "People lived in this village till a short time ago. Many men from the North have wanted to marry me, when I was unwilling and refused each one of them, they changed me and drove my father and all his people away. I was left here for dead."

"Come," said the young man, "We will go and find your father."

They set out together, and after a while came to a village. Crow, with his large family, lived in the house at the edge of the village. When the young man told Crow the story of the long house and the chief's daughter, Crow said, "My chief is this girl's father. I'll tell him that his daughter is alive."

Crow hurried to the chief's house and said to the chief, "Your daughter is alive."

The mother screamed, "You lie! no one ever came to life after being dead more than ten days." And taking up a club she started to drive Crow out of the house.

"Don't strike him," said the chief, "Maybe our daughter has come to life."

"She has," said Crow, "She is in my house now.

"Tell her to come here," said the chief.

When the chief and his wife saw their daughter they were happy, and, as they were willing, the young man became their son-in-law.

After a few days the man said to his wife, "Borrow your father's bow and arrows, all the young men in the village are to hunt to-morrow; I must go with them."

Each man went alone, starting early. Crow met the young man, and said, "I'll fly high and look around, see where the deer are."

Crow saw ten deer some distance away. He came down and said, "I'll fly behind those deer and drive them toward you, you can kill them."

The! young man waited till the deer passed, then when all were in line, he killed the ten with one arrow.

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Crow said, "The hunters never give me anything but intestines."

"You may have a whole deer to-day," said the young man. Crow flew home with the news, and asked, "What are our young men good for? The chief's son-in-law has killed ten deer before sunrise."

The other hunters had bad luck.

At night there was a feast and a dance in the long house.

The hunters planned to kill the young man. When in the dance he came to the middle of the long house, by their magic they made him sink deep into the ground, disappear. But Crow knew where he was, and when all were gone he called upon his friend Turkey to dig up the young man.

Turkey came and scratched till at last he had the dirt away, then Crow made a rope and together they drew the young man out of the ground.

The chief decided to leave the enemies of his son-in-law and go with the good people, the friends of his son-in-law, to live in the village where the young man's grandfather lived.

They went there, settled down, and lived happily.