“Aye, tomorrow we will gather sprouts. Where do they grow thickest and straightest, grandmother?”
“Now, you boys had better let sprouts and war alone,” retorted the grandmother.
“But we must win back our losing,” cried the boys, with so much vehemence that the grandmother only shook her head and exclaimed: “A-ti-ki! (“Blood!”) Strange creatures, my grandchildren, both!” whereupon the two boys poked one the other and laughed.
“Well,” added the grandmother, “I have warned you; now act your own thoughts”;—and the boys looked at her as earnestly as though they knew nothing of what she would say. “Fine warriors, indeed, who do not know where to look for arrow-sticks! But if you will go sprouting, why, over there in the Rain-pond Basin are plenty of sprouts, and then north on Scale Ridge grow more, and over in Oak Cañon are fine oak-sprouts, more than ten boys like you could carry, and above here around Great Mountain are other kinds, and everywhere grow sprouts enough, if people weren’t beasts passing understanding; and, what’s more, I could tell you boys something to your advantage if you would ever listen to your old grandmother, but—”
“What is it? What is it?” interrupted the boys excitedly, just as if they knew nothing of what she would say.
“Why, over there by the Rain-pond Basin lives your grandfather—”
“Who’s that? Who’s that?” interrupted the boys again.
“I’ve a mind not to tell you, you shameless little beasts, another word,” jerked out the old grandmother, sucking her lips as if they were marrowbones, and digging into the pudding she was stirring as though it were alive enough to be killed,—“just as though I were not telling you as fast as I could; and, besides, anything but little beasts would know their grandfather—why, the Rainbow-worm, of course!”[18]
[18] One of the “measuring-worms” which is named the rainbow, on account of his streaked back and habit of bending double when travelling. [Back]
“The Rainbow-worm our grandfather, indeed!” persisted the boys; and they would have said more had not their grandmother, getting cross, raised the pudding-stick at them, and bid them “shut up!” So they subsided, and the old woman continued: “Yes, your grandfather, and for shame!—You may sit there and giggle all you please, but your grandfather the Rainbow-worm is a great warrior, I can tell you, and if you boys will go sprouting, why, I can tell you, you will fare but with poverty the day after, if you do not get him to help you, that’s all!”