Horned Toad Sings in Black Boy's Stomach

HORNED TOAD SINGS IN BLACK BOY'S STOMACH ³

Black Boy (Munaga) was planting cotton. Horned Toad came along and asked, "What are you doing? What are you planting?" "I am planting cotton." Horned Toad did not know cotton. He said again, "Tell me straight. If you don't tell me what you are planting, I'll eat you." "I am telling you. I am planting cotton." Still Horned Toad did not know what he was doing. He said, "I shall ask you four times. If you don't tell me it plainly I shall swallow you." Every little while he said, "What are you planting?" and Black Boy answered, "Cotton." "That is once. I shall ask you again." When the four times were up Black Boy jumped on Horned Toad and swallowed him. He kept on planting. While he was working along he heard a song. He said to himself, "I thought I heard somebody singing." At last he discovered it was in his belly.

Black Boy, Black Boy,
I am in your belly;
Whatever is there,
Your stomach, liver, lungs, heart,
I am eating them!

p. 157

Black Boy got scared. He stopped planting and said, "Why did I tell her right, for she is eating my belly all up?" He thought, "I'll go down to the river and at the river there will be the Flint medicine man. He will have his obsidian knife (the stone knife of the medicine societies) to open my belly." He kept hearing the song and he was scared. He ran as fast as he could. When he got there he found the medicine, man by the edge of the river. Black Boy said to him, "Are you waiting here for anybody to come?" "Yes." "I came down to ask you to open my stomach. A horned toad went into it." "All right. Let me go into the river to get my sharp stone." He went into the river. He was gone a long time, but finally he came out again. He brought out his thunder knife and told Black Boy to lie down on his back. He cut into his belly and Horned Toad jumped out and ran off to the west. The medicine man went back into the river and came out again. He rubbed Black Boy's body and it closed where he had cut it open. He went back into the river, and Black Boy got up and went home.

Footnotes

156:3 Informant 2. Notes, p. 242.