The crow took one of the owl’s feathers, dipped it into the oil, and painted beautiful black spots all over the owl’s body. He did it very well and made the owl look fine.
Then came the owl’s turn to paint the crow. At first he liked to do it, and made such pretty round spots that the crow began to feel very proud indeed; but before he was half through, the owl got tired of working so hard; and taking the lamp, he turned it upside down, and poured the black oil all over the crow.
How angry that crow was when he found himself black all over! He tried his best to get it off, but it was no use. The black stuck fast.
Ever since then, the crow has been the blackest of all birds.
“Poured the black oil all over the crow”
THE RUNNING STICK
Long ago, in the village of Na-ki-a-ki-a-mute, there lived a strong man, or chief, with his wife, to whom he was very devoted. They had no children, but among their neighbors was a little girl who lived in a tiny house with her grandmother. These two were very poor, but the chief was rich, and the chief’s wife loved the little girl and had her often with her. Indeed the child used to come every day to fetch water for the chief’s wife, from the water hole through the ice in the river nearby.
One day the man went off hunting, and when he came back with a fine fat seal for their food his wife was gone. He called and called her, but she did not answer. Then he went to all his neighbors seeking her, but no one had seen her, and no trace of her could he find anywhere. There was not even a footprint to show in which direction she had gone.