Then they all fell to quarreling about their berries, and no one thought of the giant; until suddenly a big voice roared at them, and there he stood.
Before they had time to recover from their surprise and run away, the giant gathered them all up in his immense hands and popped them into his big parka. Then, laughing loudly, he threw the coat over his shoulder and carried them to his cave. Poor little things! They writhed and wriggled and screamed and cried, but it did them no good at all.
The giant only laughed the louder.
“Oh, if we had only paid attention to our parents,” cried one little boy, “we would not have come near the cave! Now the giant will eat us up!”
They all fell to weeping bitterly, saying they would never be disobedient again, if only they could get away from the giant.
Just outside of the cave was a tall post with the giant’s totem, which was a large whale. Mi-e-rak-puk tied the parka to the post and left it hanging there.
Pretty soon, one of the children saw a bird fly by. They all began to sing:
“Please come and set us free,
For if we must stay here,
Then eaten up we’ll be.”
But the bird was a sea gull, and flapping his beautiful gray wings he sailed past them as though he heard nothing. Then they all fell to crying again.
After a while a weasel came along, and they started again to sing: