“Now, just listen to that,” said the boy; “my old grandmother is singing one of those tedious prayers; it will take us forever to go down.”
Then presently the old Bat Woman, perfectly unconscious of his state of mind, began to sing again:
“Thlen thla kia yai na kia.”
“There she goes again,” said he to himself; “I declare, I must look up; it will drive me wild to sit here all this time and hear my old grandmother try to sing.”
Then, after a little while, she commenced again:
“Ha ash tchaa ni,—Ha ash tchaa ni:
Tche pa naa,—thlen-thle.
Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!”
The boy stretched himself up, and said: “Look here, grandmother! I have heard your ‘Thlen! Thlen! Thlen!’ enough this time. I am going to open my eyes.”
“Oh, my grandchild, never think of such a thing.” Then she began again to sing: