“Fish,” said the Eagle. “Go down and catch some for me.”
The Beaver woman wiped her hands and then dived down into the water. The Eagle watched her go, for he was half starved. He longed for a meal of rich, freshly caught fish. He watched the smooth water for some time, but he could see not even a ripple. After he had waited an hour, the water stirred and the brown head of the Beaver woman showed.
“Your feast of fish awaits you, O Eagle,” the Beaver woman said.
“But where are the fish?” the Eagle demanded.
“They wait for you on my table, down in the Beaver lodge,” she said, and then she went under the water again.
The Eagle went hungry for a long time. Even now, when the Beaver family walks on four feet, and the Eagle is a bird, all go hungry who are too proud to work for their food.
LITTLE FOOTSTEPS
UPON THE WATER.
Once upon a time there was a little Indian boy, and his name was Footsteps Upon the Water because he could run so fast and so softly.