Now, when Raven Arrow’s wife saw this she felt that she too would like some berries, and she asked her husband if he could do this. But he said: “No. It is useless for me to try to do things that I know I cannot do. I can change myself into a raven and can do many other things, but I cannot make ripe berries grow in the spring, nor can I do many other things that Nothing Child does.”
After some time it happened that food again became scarce in the camp, and the chief sent word to his son-in-law, asking him if he could not again bring the buffalo into the camp, as he had done before. The hunters had been out [[184]]and had travelled far over the prairie, but they could see nothing. Nothing Child sent word back that this was a hard thing he was asked to do; he feared he could not do it, but he would try.
He made ready for his journey and started, travelling a long way looking for the buffalo, but he found none. He then went to the marsh where he had made buffalo before, and again made many little piles of buffalo chips in rows, and again went back some distance and then came charging down on the piles running and shouting. And the fourth time he did this the piles of chips changed into real buffalo and started running. And Nothing Child ran the herd over the cliff, as he had done before, and again the camp was supplied with meat. In this herd was one white buffalo. His wife met him at the cliff, and he told her that this white buffalo was hers. That she must be careful of the skin when she had taken it off.
His wife told her husband that Raven Arrow had changed himself into a raven, and had flown away to look for buffalo, saying that if he found any he was going to drive them out of the country. This made Nothing Child [[185]]angry, but he said nothing and waited. One day, as he was sitting by the fire, Raven Arrow, in the shape of a white raven, flew into the lodge and lit on the ground by him. When Nothing Child saw him he seized him and tied him by the feet to a lodge pole high up in the smoke and kept him there until he was nearly dead from the smoke. At last Nothing Child asked him if he would promise never again to drive the buffalo away from the people. Raven Arrow promised that he would never again do so, and Nothing Child untied him and let him down, when he changed into a man again. Up to that time ravens had always been white, but ever since the smoking that this raven got they have been black.
Nothing Child and his wife lived to full age and always had plenty of everything. [[187]]
Shield Quiver’s Wife
[[189]]
There were two young men growing up in the Blackfoot camp. They were both good warriors and were making great names for themselves. One was lucky in taking horses. His name was Shield Quiver. The other was fortunate in killing enemies when he went to war. He was called Bearhead. When either of the two went to war, he always had a big party to follow him. Bearhead was jealous of Shield Quiver, because he always brought in horses.
One time the Blackfeet were camped at the Bear Paw Mountains, when Shield Quiver made up his mind that he would go off on the war-path. When he said that he was going, a large party intended to go with him.