And they gathered blackberries and nuts and wild strawberries, and sat down all together to eat the fruit with the corn-cakes that they had brought; and those who had not had enough to eat, nibbled at the acorns. But nobody ate many of these, because they were meant to be carried home for storing, and not to be eaten raw at any time. They were to be dried beside the fire in jars, and then pounded up and mixed with corn-meal to make it go further.
At sunset the people all joined into a company again to go home. Every one had a load. There were big baskets that took two to carry, and smaller baskets for one, and little baskets for the children: and some of the lads and women had wallets made of deer-hide slung over their shoulders.
The Wild Boar
And so they carried home the harvest of the woods, day by day until all the trees were bare—and you may be sure that the squirrels had to be astir very early in the morning to get a share of acorns and nuts for their own winter stores.
Chapter the Eighth
How Crubach became a Sower of Corn