Again the youth sat down to eat, and repeated the formula which his wife had described to him. She ate with him as before, and vanished when the meal was over.
"Father," said the young man, "let the very young women dance before me."
But the Snake-woman was not found among them either.
Another fleeting visit from his wife induced the chief's son to make yet another attempt to find her in the community.
"Let the young girls dance," he said. Still the mysterious Snake-woman was not found.
One day a girl overheard voices in the youth's lodge, and, peering in, saw a beautiful woman sharing his meal. She told the news to the chief, and it soon became known that the chief's son was married to a beautiful stranger.
The youth, however, wished to marry a woman of his own tribe; but the maiden's father, having heard that the young man was already married, told his daughter that she was only being made fun of.
So the girl had nothing more to do with her wooer, who turned for consolation to his ring. He caused food to be brought, and placed the ring on a seat.
The Ring Unavailing
"Come," he said, "let us eat."