The sweat-house was built of bones, and was plastered outside with mucus from Sas’s nose, so that no smoke could escape through the cracks. After Tulchuherris went in he saw how Sas made the fire. The old man never used wood, always bones. He piled on bones; fat and marrow came out of them, blazed up, made a great smoke, and the smell of the smoke was not pleasant. After sweating for a while Sas said,—
“I am old now and weak, nearly blind. I cannot stand much. My head aches. I must go out to rest. Stay here you and take a good sweat. When you have finished, come out.”
Old Sas went out. The door was small, he could barely crawl through it. When outside, he lay across the door and stopped the passage with his body, so that no one could go out and no smoke could escape. After a time Tulchuherris said,—
“My father-in-law, I should like to go out. Go from the door, let me pass, I have sweated enough.”
“Oh, I am old and weak,” answered Sas. “I am lying here to rest. When I have rested some, my son-in-law, I will rise and let you out.”
Tulchuherris was silent a little while longer. Then he groaned, “Oh, I’m nearly dead!”
“My brother,” asked Winishuyat, “do you want to die? Do you want old Sas to kill you, to smoke you to death? You have no wish to die, I do not want to die. We are strong people, stronger than Sas. I will tell you how to go out. Take that Chirchihas bone which you have and make a hole in the north side of the sweat-house.”
Tulchuherris made a hole in the wall of the sweat-house. He spat then and spoke to the spittle. “Make noise for an hour,” said he, “and groan just as I do—‘enh, enh, enh!’ Let Sas believe that I am here, that I am dying.”
Tulchuherris slipped out through the hole, walked to the river, swam there, washed himself clean, went back to Saskewil, and sat down with his two wives, Sas’s daughters. Sas heard the groaning of the spittle inside and said to himself, “Tulchuherris is dying.”
After a long time the noise stopped, and Sas said, “Tulchuherris is dead.” Then he went to the river, washed himself, and walked along slowly toward the house. When he came near, he was saying,—