Then the elderly man said to her, “My granddaughter, prepare some food and set it before him who has entered our lodge, for he is probably hungry. With dried green corn as it cooks in the pot you must mix dried venison pounded fine, and into this mixture you must put a sufficient quantity of maple sugar and a quantity of bear’s grease or fat, to make the whole savory and appetizing.” The old man’s granddaughter at once obeyed, and after kindling the fire to make it burn briskly, she set a pot of water over it containing a quantity of dried sweet green corn. Bringing maple sugar from her store in a bark case, she put it into the pot with the corn. Then, procuring the dried venison and the bear’s grease, having pounded them fine, she put these ingredients also in the pot to cook with the other things. When she found that the corn soup was cooked she removed the pot from the fire and set it aside to permit the contents to cool. When it was sufficiently cooled the young maiden, taking up a portion of the soup with a ladle, placed it in a bark bowl and, setting it before Honenhineh, said to him, “Take this and eat it. I have prepared it for you.” Honenhineh, being quite hungry, willingly ate what was set before him.
It was not long after Honenhineh had finished eating that night came. Before the evening was far advanced the old man said, “Let us now retire for the night. Our guest has come here tired out in all probability, for he has traveled a long distance.” So they lay down for the night. Then the old man said, “My granddaughter, let me tell my story,” and he began to sing, “It is said that there were eight brothers who lived in a lodge.” This was the topic of the story which he chanted three times.
After waiting a few moments he said in a stage whisper to the sleeping visitor, “My grandson, are you listening to my story?” The only reply he received was the loud snoring of the guest. Presently the old man exclaimed, “The game animals are just toying with me. Why, one has even come into my lodge (to show its contempt for me).” So saying, the old man arose and took down his war club from its resting place, and approaching the sleeping visitor, he killed him with blows on the head. Then, replacing his club, he got out a huge clay pot, which he set over the fire after placing some water in it. Next he quartered the body of his victim and placed all the pieces in the pot to cook. While engaged in this gruesome work he kept saying, “I still can deal with the game animals which visit my lodge in my approved way, and so I am still able to eat the flesh of the most rare game animals.”
In the meantime, when night came on the lodge of Honenhineh and his younger brothers, the brothers returned one by one until all were there except the eldest, Honenhineh, who of course did not return. [[529]]His absence was duly noted. The brother next in age said, “I met him just this side of the Great Valley.” The following morning the brother next in age to Honenhineh started out on his brother’s trail to seek for him. He had gone along for some time when he was surprised to find the tracks of his brother, which he at once followed. Before long he saw ahead of him light through the trees from clearings in the forest, and he found also indisputable evidence that his brother had stood there. So he started forward slowly and finally came to the top of a hill overlooking the Great Valley, where he stood still for a moment. While standing there he heard the sound of a blow struck by a war club on the opposite side of the valley, and he heard the voice of a man singing, “I am indeed fortunate, for on the opposite side of the valley a human being walks along.” After thinking a few moments, he exclaimed: “Pshaw! This is all right. There is where my elder brother is moving about from place to place. Perhaps he has treed some animal or has found an animal in its lair. It must be a bear, I think. So be it; I shall go thither.”
In pursuance of his resolution, he resumed his brother’s trail and descended into the valley until he came to a bench, or terrace, where he stopped for a moment. Here he was surprised to see pieces of bark fall several times around him. Looking up into a tree near by, he saw clinging to the trunk far above the ground a small flicker, or yellowhammer. The bird smiled at him, exclaiming, “He has a bow in his hand just as if he could use it, for it is well known that he is quite a poor marksman.” At this the young man at once strung his bow and shot an arrow at the bird, whereupon he was surprised to see the arrows of his brother stuck in the tree. His first shot missed the bird, as did all the others. When all his arrows had been shot away, stuck fast in the tree top, he broke his bow and cast it away. Now, he was greatly surprised to see the pieces of his bow fall beside those of his brother’s bow. While he was shooting at the bird, it merely smiled and said, “It is curious that one who is a poor marksman generally goes about with a bow and arrows,” and it was only when he had lost all his arrows that he drew aside in disgust and destroyed his bow as a token that he did not care about what had happened to him. After casting away his bow the young man exclaimed: “Pshaw! I will go on farther, for I now hear my brother singing in the distance,” for he heard the voice of a man singing on the opposite side of the Great Valley.
Starting on a run down into the valley, he had not gone far before he saw ahead of him a field. When he reached the border of this he stood there a moment, but seeing in the distance a lodge and smoke issuing from it, he exclaimed: “So be it. Let me go [[530]]to that lodge to see what I may find. My elder brother has gone there.”
When he reached the lodge the young man came to a halt, but he had no sooner done so than he heard the voice of a man inside say to him: “Oh, my grandson! come in; you have visited my lodge at this time.” Accepting this challenge, the young man entered, whereupon the old man said to him: “I am thankful that you have now paid our (two) lodge a visit.” In front of him the young man saw a young maiden seated on a couch, weaving a forehead pack strap from slippery-elm-bark fiber. Then the old man said to her: “Make room on your mat for our visitor, for you and he are to become husband and wife. I am so delighted by this visit, for we two are to be pitied, living alone in this lodge, I and my granddaughter.” Obeying her grandfather, the young maiden made room on her mat for the young man. Next the old man said to the young man: “You have come here looking for your elder brother, Honenhineh. He passed here. Yonder, not far away, stands another lodge. There is where your brother has gone; he will return soon, I think.” Turning to his granddaughter, the old man said: “Oh, granddaughter! prepare food for our visitor; he is perhaps hungry, having come a long distance. You must pound up dried green sweet corn and dried venison, and place these in a pot to cook, to make corn soup; and you must put into the pot also maple sugar and bear’s grease. When the soup is cooked, place a bowlful before our visitor and let him eat his fill.”
The maiden set to work preparing the corn soup, as she had been instructed to do. First she pounded up dried sweet green corn and then dried venison. Then, having placed a large clay pot over the fire with water in it, she put in the dried corn and venison, which soon began to cook. Presently she added maple sugar to her soup. While these were cooking, the old man got for her some bear’s grease, which he brought to her in a bowl, saying: “Oh, granddaughter, put this also in the pot of soup.” When the soup was cooked, the maiden removed the pot from the fire and the contents were then placed in bark bowls to cool. When ready, the young woman placed a large bowl of the soup before the young man, telling him to eat his fill. When he had eaten what was set before him he thanked the old man, his “grandfather,” who acknowledged the compliment by saying, “My grandson, you were to be pitied, for you were very hungry when you visited my lodge.”
It was not long after this that night came. Before night had fully settled down the old man said: “Let us retire to sleep. Our visitor has come to us very tired, I suppose. You should prepare a separate couch of bark. I am very anxious concerning the probable return of his elder brother tonight. At all events, I suppose [[531]]he will probably return by tomorrow.” Having said this, the old man lay down, saying to the young man and the young woman: “Do ye two retire to sleep. I my own little self am asleep” (i.e., lying down to sleep).
After they had all retired for the night the old man said aloud, “Let me tell a tale,” and thereupon he began to sing, “They (masc.) have a lodge as a home, it is said; they are eight in number; they are lost (devoted to destruction).” He sang this song through three times. Now the young man began to snore loudly, for he had fallen sound asleep. In a short time the old man arose, and carefully readjusting his robe, said: “I am greatly perturbed in my mind. A game animal has come into my lodge on a visit.” Then taking down his war club and approaching his sleeping guest, he killed him by blows on the head.