Aw-Aw-Tam Indian Nights: Being the Myths and Legends of the Pimas of Arizona

by J. Wm. Lloyd; Comalk-Hawk-Kih

And tell all the people to sweep their houses, and around their houses, and if anything in their houses is broken, such as pots, vahs-hroms, to turn them right side up. For I am coming back openly; there will be no secret about it.”

So the little boy went back and told the doctor all that Corn had told him to say, and the doctor and the people built the kee, and Tobacco went there, and the people swept their houses and around them as they were told.

And before sunset the woman came home with the corn and pumpkins she had cooked at the mountain, but Corn staid out till it was evening.

And when evening came there was a black cloud where Corn stood, and soon it began to rain corn, and every little while a big pumpkin would come down, bump. And it rained corn and pumpkins all night, while Corn and his bride were in their kee, and in the morning the people went out and gathered up the corn from the swept place around their houses.

And so Corn and Pumpkin came back again.

The people gathered up all the corn around their houses, and all their vessels, even their broken ones, which they had turned up, were full, and their houses were soon packed full of corn and pumpkins.

So Corn lived there with his wife, and after a while Tobacco had a baby, and it was a little crooked-necked pumpkin, such as the Pimas call a dog-pumpkin.

And when the child had grown a little, one day its father and mother went out to work in the garden, and they put the little pumpkin baby behind a mat leaning against the wall. And some children, coming in, found it there, and began to play with it for a doll, carrying it on their backs as they do their dolls. And finally they dropped it and broke its neck.

And when Corn came back and found his baby was broken he was angry, and left his wife, and went east again, and staid there awhile, and then bethought him of his pets, the blackbirds, which he had left behind, and came back to his wife again.

But after awhile he again went east, taking his pets with him, scattering grains of corn so that the blackbirds would follow him.