As it rolled along the ground, the blood, excited by the feelings
of the head in this terrible scene, gushed from the nose and mouth.
The bear, tottering, soon fell with a tremendous noise.
Then she cried for help, and the young men came
rushing out, having partially regained their strength and
spirits.
Mudjikewis, stepping up, gave a yell and struck him a blow upon
the head. This he repeated, till it seemed like a mass of brains,
while the others, as quick as possible, cut him into very small pieces,
which they then scattered in every direction. While thus employed,
happening to look around where they had thrown the meat,
wonderful to behold, they saw starting up and turning off in every
direction small black bears, such as are seen at the present day.
The country was soon overspread with these black animals.
And it was from this monster that the present race of bears
derived their origin.
Having thus overcome their pursuer, they returned to the lodge.
In the meantime, the woman, gathering the implements she had used,
and the head, placed them again in the sack. But the head did not
speak again, probably from its great exertion to overcome the monster.
Having spent so much time and traversed so vast a country in their flight,
the young men gave up the idea of ever returning to their own country,
and game being plenty, they determined to remain where they now were.
One day they moved off some distance from the lodge for the
purpose of hunting, having left the wampum with the woman.
They were very successful, and amused themselves, as all young
men do when alone, by talking and jesting with each other.
One of them spoke and said, ‘We have all this sport to ourselves;
let us go and ask our sister if she will not let us bring the head
to this place, as it is still alive. It may be pleased to hear us talk,
and be in our company. In the meantime take food to our sister.’
They went and requested the head. She told them to take it,
and they took it to their hunting-grounds, and tried to amuse it,
but only at times did they see its eyes beam with pleasure.
One day, while busy in their encampment, they were unexpectedly attacked
by unknown Indians. The skirmish was long contested and bloody;
many of their foes were slain, but still they were thirty to one.
The young men fought desperately till they were all killed.
The attacking party then retreated to a height of ground,
to muster their men, and to count the number of missing and slain.
One of their young men had stayed away, and, in endeavoring
to overtake them, came to the place where the head was hung up.
Seeing that alone retain animation, he eyed it for some time
with fear and surprise. However, he took it down and opened
the sack, and was much pleased to see the beautiful feathers,
one of which he placed on his head.
Starting off, it waved gracefully over him till he reached his party,
when he threw down the head and sack, and told them how he had
found it, and that the sack was full of paints and feathers.
They all looked at the head and made sport of it.
Numbers of the young men took the paint and painted themselves,
and one of the party took the head by the hair and said–
‘Look, you ugly thing, and see your paints on the faces of warriors.’
But the feathers were so beautiful, that numbers of them
also placed them on their heads. Then again they used all
kinds of indignity to the head, for which they were in turn
repaid by the death of those who had used the feathers.
Then the chief commanded them to throw away all except the head.
‘We will see,’ said he, ‘when we get home, what we can do with it.
We will try to make it shut its eyes.’
When they reached their homes they took it to the council-lodge,
and hung it up before the fire, fastening it with raw hide soaked,