It is a far cry from the stories of the North along the banks of the Mississippi, from that land of long winters, through the country of the mound builders, to the sunnier Southland; yet from north to south, around the glimmering Indian fires, grouped eager men and women and children, listening to the story tellers.

But quite different are the tales of the Southland—of the Cherokees, Biloxis, and Chitimachas. They are stories of wild turkeys, of persimmons and raccoons, and of the spirits which dwell in the mountain places where none dare go. Stories also are they of Brer Rabbit and the tar wolf, which came from Indian slaves working in the fields in early days, through the negro slaves working beside them, to the children of the white men.

It is a loss to American literature that so much of the legendary history of these Indian tribes has gone, beyond hope of recovery. Exquisite in color, poetical in feeling, these legends of sun, moon, and stars, of snow, ice, lightning, thunders, the winds, the life of the forest birds and animals about them, and the longing to understand the why and the how of life—all which we have only in fragments. Longfellow’s work shows the wonderful beauty of these northern legends, nor has he done violence to any of them in making them poetical. His picture of the departure of Hiawatha, the lone figure standing stately and solemn, as the canoe drifted out towards the glowing sunset, while from the shore, in the shadow of the forest, came the low Indian chant, mingling with the sighing of the pine trees, is truely Indian. For the mystical and poetical is strong in the Indian nature.

As in all the other volumes of this series, no effort has been made to ornament or amplify these legends in the effort to make them “literary,” or give them “literary charm.” They must speak for themselves. What editing has been done has been in simplifying them, and freeing them from the verbose setting in which many were found. For in this section of the country, settled before it was realized that there was an Indian literature, the original work of noting down the myths was very imperfectly done.

Thanks are due to the work of Albert E. Jenks, on the wild rice Indians of the upper lakes; to James Mooney, for the myths of the Cherokees; to George Catlin, for some of the upper Mississippi legends; to the well-known but almost inaccessible work of Schoolcraft, and to others.

K. B. J.

[!-- blank page --]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE
The Earth-MakerWinnebago[1]
CreationChitimacha[5]
The CreationWyandot[8]
Creation of the RacesBiloxi[12]
Story of the CreationOjibwa[14]
Creation (a fragment)Ojibwa[16]
Creation of the MandansMandan[17]
The FloodChitimacha[19]
The Great Flood (a fragment)Mandan[20]
The Great FloodMenomini[21]
Origin of FireMenomini[26]
The Thunderers and the Origin of FireMenomini[28]
The Origin of FireChitimacha[31]
The Gifts of the Sky GodChitimacha[32]
MondaminOjibwa[34]
MondaminOttawa[37]
The Corn WomanCherokee[40]
Discovery of Wild RiceOjibwa[42]
Origin of Wild RiceOjibwa[44]
Origin of WinnebagoMenomini[45]
The Origin of TobaccoMenomini[49]
Origin of Maple SugarMenomini[51]
Manabush and the MooseMenomini[53]
Origin of Day and NightMenomini[54]
Origin of the BearCherokee[56]
Origin of the Word ChicagoOjibwa[58]
Origin of the Word ChicagoMenomini[60]
The Coming of ManabushMenomini[61]
The Story of ManabushMenomini[62]
Manabozho and WestOjibwa[65]
Manabush and the Great FishMenomini[69]
The Departure of ManabushMenomini[72]
The Return of ManabushMenomini[74]
The Request for ImmortalityMenomini[75]
Peboan and SeegwunOjibwa[77]
The Grave FiresOjibwa[79]
The Death TrailCherokee[82]
The Duck and the North West WindOjibwa[84]
How the Hunter Destroyed SnowMenomini[87]
The Pipe of PeaceOjibwa[90]
The Thunder’s NestOjibwa[92]
The PipestoneSioux[93]
The PipestoneKnisteneaux[94]
Pau-puk-kee-wisOjibwa[95]
Iagoo, the BoasterOjibwa[102]
Ojeeg, the Summer-MakerOjibwa[104]
Rabbit Goes Duck HuntingCherokee[109]
Rabbit and the Tar BabyBiloxi[111]
Rabbit and Tar WolfCherokee[114]
Rabbit and PantherMenomini[116]
How Rabbit Stole Otter’s CoatCherokee[118]
Rabbit and BearBiloxi[122]
Why Deer Never Eat MenMenomini[125]
How Rabbit Snared the SunBiloxi[128]
When the Orphan Trapped the SunOjibwa[130]
The Hare and the LynxOjibwa[134]
Welcome to a BabyCherokee[137]
Baby SongCherokee[139]
Song to the FireflyOjibwa[140]
Song of the Mother BearsCherokee[141]
The Man in the StumpCherokee[143]
The Ants and the KatydidsBiloxi[144]
When the Owl MarriedCherokee[145]
The Kite and the Eagle [147]
The Linnet and the EagleOjibwa[148]
How Partridge got his WhistleCherokee[149]
How Kingfisher got his BillCherokee[151]
Why the Blackbird Has Red WingsChitimacha[153]
Ball Game of the Birds and AnimalsCherokee[155]
Why the Birds Have Sharp TailsBiloxi[158]
The Wildcat and the TurkeysBiloxi[159]
The Brant and the OtterBiloxi[161]
The Tiny Frog and the Panther [163]
The Frightener of HuntersChoctaw (Bayou Lacomb)[166]
The Hunter and the AlligatorChoctaw (Bayou Lacomb)[167]
The Groundhog DanceCherokee[169]
The RacoonMenomini[171]
Why the Opossum Plays DeadBiloxi[172]
Why the ’Possum’s Tail is BareCherokee[174]
Why ’Possum Has a Large MouthChoctaw (Bayou Lacomb)[176]
The Porcupine and the Two SistersMenomini[177]
The Wolf and the DogCherokee[179]
The Catfish and the MooseMenomini[180]
TurtleMenomini[181]
The Worship of the SunOjibwa[185]
Tashka and WaloChoctaw (Bayou Lacomb)[189]
Sun and MoonMenomini[192]
The Moon PersonBiloxi[193]
The Star CreaturesCherokee[194]
MeteorsMenomini[195]
The Aurora BorealisMenomini[196]
The West WindChitimacha[197]
The Lone LightningOjibwa[198]
The ThundersCherokee[200]
Months of the YearNatchez[201]
Why the Oaks and Sumachs ReddenFox[202]
The Man of IceCherokee[205]
The NunnehiCherokee[207]
The Little PeopleCherokee[210]
War SongOjibwa[212]
The War MedicineCherokee[213]
The Coming of the White ManWyandot[214]