Wawenock Myth Texts from Maine / Forty-third Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1925-26, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1928, pages 165-198

by Frank G. Speck

D

GLUSKABE BECOMES ANGRY AT THE BIRCH TREE AND MARKS IT FOR LIFE

1. 1. wᴐ̹·´wi·git
   2. Here camps
2. 1. notlo`´kαŋga`n
   2. my story
3. 1. wa
   2. that
4. 1. Gluskα̨bε´
   2. Gluskabe
5. 1. ni·gani·yu´
   2. also here
6. 1. babmi·zobe´k`ᵂke`t
   2. wandering by the ocean
7. 1. ni·metcełε·´
   2. then started out with
8. 1. uda´lnola`k`ᵂ[58]
   2. his man’s boat
9. 1. ni·gizi·´yume`t`-
   2. and when he had
10. 1. kak
    2. worn it out
11. 1. ·wudu·´l`
    2. his canoe
12. 1. ni·udli·´dəhα̨zi`n
    2. then he thought
13. 1. pla
    2. for awhile,
14. 1. nda´təwoli`n
    2. I will build a canoe
15. 1. ni·geła´
    2. and so
16. 1. ni·ugwi·lauhα´n
    2. he searched for
17. 1. maskwe´muzi·a`l`
    2. a birch tree
18. 1. wela´k`ᵂəseli·´t
    2. straight one
19. 1. ni·ugi´ptahα´n
    2. then he cut it down
20. 1. ni·gi·zi·´gi·bi·lα´nt
    2. and when he had felled it
21. 1. waba·´zi´·
    2. that tree
22. 1. ne´ləwε·´
    2. almost
23. 1. uzəli·gi·`tahogu´l`
    2. it nearly fell on him
24. 1. awαkα̨dji·´
    2. hardly
25. 1. ugi·zi·´wədji·´bulowα´n
    2. he could escape.
26. 1. ni·udli·dəhαmα´n
    2. Then he thought
27. 1. “nda´tci·mi·na`
    2. “Never again
28. 1. kəni·l`ke´u!”
    2. you will kill!” (anybody)
29. 1. nip`skα̨´təgwα`n
    2. That branch
30. 1. wikwənəmə´n
    2. he took
31. 1. ni·uses·əm`hα´n
    2. and he switched it
32. 1. yuli´l
    2. this
33. 1. maskwε´muzi·a´l`
    2. birch tree
34. 1. ni´t·e
    2. at once
35. 1. eli·dji·la´kwus·i`k
    2. over its entire length
36. 1. wəs·əse´mhiga`n
    2. it was switched
37. 1. tet·a´tci·dji·`
    2. and now
38. 1. eska´mi·
    2. forever
39. 1. wewi´nαŋgwa`t
    2. it is known
40. 1. kweni·´
    2. while
41. 1. pmauzwi·´n·owi·`kek
    2. people are living
42. 1. ski·tkami´k`ᵂ
    2. on the earth.
43. 1. ni·umetα̨begəzi´n
    2. And there ends
44. 1. notlo`kαŋga´n.
    2. my story.

[58] Some kind of a hollowed-out canoe.

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GLUSKΑ̨BΕ THE TRANSFORMER
FREE TRANSLATION

A

Here begins Gluskabe. When the Owner made the first man then when the first man was made Gluskabe created himself out of the left-over material, out of this earth left over, this earth sprinkled.[59] That is why Gluskabe was so strong. Well, this Gluskabe was able to create himself. Then he moved about in a sitting position. Upon seeing this the Owner was astonished and he said, “How happened you to be here?” and Gluskabe told him, “Well, because I formed myself from the waste pieces of earth out of which you made the first man.” Then the Owner told him, “You are indeed a very wonderful man.” And Gluskabe answered, “I am a wonderful man, because you sprinkled me, and on account of being so near to you.” Then Owner said to him, “So, then, you and I shall roam about from now on.” Accordingly, they started out. They went up a hill, they went up a mountain, and when they got on top of the mountain, when they began to gaze all around with open eyes, so great a distance around could they see the lakes, the rivers, and the trees, and all the lay of the land of the country. Then the Owner said, “Look at this; behold such is my wonderful work, all created by my wish of mine. The earth, the water, the ocean, the rivers, the basins, the lakes.” Then he said to Gluskabe, “What might you have brought into existence?” Then he answered him, this Gluskabe. “I can not bring a thing into existence, but, then, one thing maybe I can accomplish.” Then he said, “Well, I could perhaps do one thing, make the wind.” Then said the Owner, “Well, then, make it; whatever you can do, according to how powerful you are.” Then, accordingly, he made the wind. It began to blow. Then it increased so strong, the rising wind, and then it blew harder until those trees were torn out by the roots and blown over. Then said the Owner to Gluskabe, “That is enough; I have seen your power, even what you can do.” Then said the Owner, “Now, I for my part. I will make a wind.” Then, accordingly, it commenced to blow in return. Then it blew so hard that they could not hold on where they were standing(?); and it blew so hard that the hair on the head of Gluskabe became all tangled up. Then when he tried to smooth it out, the hair of his head, all of it blew off and the head of hair that he had was all blown off by the wind. That is the end of this story.

[59] The Owner here corresponds to the Creator. The sprinkling evidently refers to the Roman Catholic idea of holy water.

B