And behind it, as the rain comes,

Came the steps of Hiawatha.

To a lake with many islands

Came the breathless Pau-Puk-Keewis,

Where among the water-lilies

Pishnekuh, the brant, were sailing;

Through the tufts of rushes floating,

Steering through the reedy Islands.

Now their broad black beaks they lifted,

Now they plunged beneath the water,