“There must be some one there. I have never seen that thing on a limb before.”
“Oh, that is nothing; that is always there,” said others.
“I have never seen anything there before. I will sling a stone at it.” Notudui hurled a stone, which just passed Bulibok’s head; he didn’t move. Notudui hurled another stone, almost grazed Bulibok’s nose, but he never moved.
“Oh, that is a part of the limb,” said some of the people: “it sticks up in that way.”
“A man would move if a stone came so near him,” said others.
“That is somebody; that is somebody watching us,” cried a third party; and they disputed. The people watched for a while, but Bulibok sat there as motionless as the limb till, tired of watching, they went away, and forgot all about him. He slipped down from the tree then, went home, and said,—
“I sat on a tree, saw everything, and know now the best way to go. People saw me and hurled stones. They came near hitting me twice, but I did not stir, and they let me go.”
“Now, my people,” said Sehinom Chabatu, “this war was not made by me. I hate to take you to a place like that which is before us, but we must go there. I will go first; I will go alone and look at the place.” He mounted the ridge, and from the top of it went underground till he came out in the chief house of the enemy. Then, thrusting his head up, he looked and saw a great many people. Soon someone saw him and said,—
“Why do you people not watch? Sehinom Chabatu may come. You say that he is dead—that you burned him to death in the sweat-house; but I don’t believe that you killed him.”
“Oh, he is dead long ago. We killed him; we burned him!”