In this myth-tale Tusasás, who, wherever he appears, is always the same worthless, shiftless mischief-maker and boaster, is well described. The importance of dreams is also well brought out.
THE BAD BROTHER
The hero is Rain. He drowns his mother, then sends his sister to Kówe, who in other myths is described as having control of all the springs in the world: “She lives under the water, she is in every spring. She is our grandmother. If she gets mad she can dry up the deepest water.” The sister marries Djáudjau. Djáudjau visits his brother-in-law, and on leaving he gets green twigs, rubs himself with them, then rubs the twigs on the ground, and says: “I have brought away some of my brother-in-law’s bad thoughts; now, Earth, take them all.” He talks to the mountains and forgets his brother-in-law. A description of a similar act appears in several Modoc myths.
MINK AND WEASEL
Tskel and Tcûskai are great characters. In every myth in which they appear they are brothers and Skóŭks is Tskel’s wife; Tcûskai is always small, mischievous and inquisitive. Tskel, to punish Tcûskai for giving his blanket to Gopher (Pshagéknik), who is North Wind, hid water. Tcûskai found it and was drinking it up when Tskel came. Had he drunk it all there would be no water in the world. Tskel made a cap of the skin of Gopher’s head, and putting it on, went to Thunder’s house and killed the five brothers.
Tcûskai, though he was so small that he could camp in a woodpecker’s hole, [[389]]pursued Wŏn, a creature that had to bend down to bite off the tops of trees. He wrestled with Sukas, a man-eater, who drew people in with his breath and swallowed them.—A wave.