Shell Pins Made and Used by Indians of the Mississippi Valley. Found in Graves.
THE PORCUPINE AND THE TWO SISTERS
Menomini
ONCE there dwelt in a village two sisters, who were the swiftest runners in the Menomini tribe. Towards the setting sun was another village, two days’ walk away.
The sisters wished to visit this village. They began to run at great speed. At noon they came to a hollow tree lying across the trail. In the snow on the ground, there, behold! lay the trail of Porcupine, leading to the hollow tree. One of them broke off a stick and began to poke into the log, that Porcupine might come out. She said, “Let’s have some fun with him.”
“No,” said the other sister, “he is a manido. We should leave him alone.”
But the girl with a stick poked into the hollow log until Porcupine came out. Then she caught him and pulled out his long quills and threw them in the snow. The other said, “No, it is cold. Porcupine will need his robe.”
At last the sisters ran on. The village was still far away.
Now when they left Porcupine, he crawled up a tall pine tree until he reached the very top. Then he faced the north and began to shake his small rattle, singing in time to its sound.