Many moons ago the Indians living about Hudson Bay all went to a certain place in the west for their copper.
A great mountain of copper stood there, and it was in the middle of the water. The Portage Indians tell that each tribe wanted the mountain; at last, when many tribes were working together to get out the [[267]]copper, it was agreed to let one tribe own it; but which tribe? No one could tell.
It was left for the copper mountain itself to decide who should be its master. All the tribes began to shout for it to come to them. The mountain did not move for a long time.
At last it trembled; then the Kaidah Indians, who have big heads and loud voices, shouted louder than any other tribe. The top of the mountain fell toward the Kaidahs.
“And that is why we go and trade with them for the copper with which to make the rings we give our women and children,” say the Portage or Carrier Indians of Manitoba. [[268]]
XV. THE SUN AND THE MOON
(Dakota, 1894)
he Day Sun has a twin brother that is white. He is not a strong warrior like the Day Sun, who is as red as war paint. The Day Sun can make an Indian fall down in the hot days of summer. The Indian is made weak by the arrows the Day Sun makes in the summer morning. Sometimes he lets you see these arrows. They are very long. They are around his head like the war bonnet of a very great chief.