THE COYOTE AND THE RATTLESNAKE.
The coyote’s house was near the house of the rattlesnake. The coyote said to the snake, “Let us walk together,” and while walking he said to the snake, “To-morrow come to my house.” In the morning the snake went to the house of the coyote and moved along slowly on the floor, shaking his rattle. The coyote sat to one side, much afraid; he became frightened after watching the movements of the snake and hearing the noise of the rattle. The coyote had a pot of rabbit meat cooking on the fire, which he placed in front of the snake, inviting him to eat, saying, “Companion, eat.” “No, companion, I will not eat your meat; I do not understand your food,” said the snake. “What food do you eat?” asked the coyote. “I eat the yellow flowers of the corn,” was the reply, and the coyote immediately began to look around for some, and when he found the pollen, the snake said, “Put some on the top of my head that I may eat it,” and the coyote, standing as far off as possible, dropped a little on the snake’s head. The snake said, “Come nearer and put enough on my head that I may find it.” He was very much afraid, but after a while he came close to the snake and put the pollen on his head, and after eating the pollen the snake thanked the coyote saying, “I will go now and pass about,” but before leaving he invited the coyote to his house: “Companion, to-morrow you come to my house.” “Very well,” said the coyote, “to-morrow I will go to your house.” The coyote thought much what the snake would do on the morrow. He made a small rattle (by placing tiny pebbles in a gourd) and attached it to the end of his tail, and, testing it, he was well satisfied and said: “This is well;” he then proceeded to the house of the snake. When he was near the house he shook his tail and said to himself, “This is good; I guess when I go into the house the snake will be very much afraid of me.” He did not walk into the house, but moved like a snake. The coyote could not shake the rattle as the snake did his; he had to hold his tail in his hand. When he shook his rattle the snake appeared afraid and said, “Companion, I am much afraid of you.” The snake had a stew of rats on the fire, which he placed before the coyote and invited him to eat, saying, “Companion, eat some of my food,” and the coyote replied, “I do not understand your food; I can not eat it, because I do not understand it.” The snake insisted upon his eating, but the coyote continued to refuse, saying, “If you will put some of the flower of the corn on my head I will eat; I understand that food.” The snake quickly procured some corn pollen, but he pretended to be afraid to go too near the coyote, and stood off a distance. The coyote told him to come nearer and put it well on the top of his head; but the snake replied, “I am afraid of you.” The coyote said, “Come nearer to me; I am not bad,” and the snake came closer and put the pollen on the coyote’s head and the coyote tried to eat the pollen; but he had not the tongue of the snake, so could not take it from his head. He made many attempts to reach the top of his head, putting his tongue first on one side of his nose and then on the other, but he could only reach either side of his nose. His repeated failures made the snake laugh heartily. The snake put his hand over his mouth, so that the coyote should not see him laugh; he really hid his head in his body. The coyote was not aware that the snake discovered that he could not obtain the food. As he left the snake’s house he held his tail in his hand and shook the rattle; and the snake cried, “Oh companion! I am so afraid of you,” but in reality the snake shook with laughter. The coyote, returning to his house, said to himself, “I was such a fool; the snake had much food to eat and I would not take it. Now I am very hungry,” and he went out in search of food.