章节正文
Glancing along from the one on the right to the last one on the
left, he stepped forward and placed his hand on the one next to the
right. Thanks to his boy, if he hadn't put that little stem of
grass on his mother's hair, the father could never have picked out
his wife, as the four looked as much alike as four peas. Next came
the four boy calves, and as they advanced they commenced dancing,
and his son was shaking his head and flopping his ears and
switching his tail. The father was going to pick out his boy, when
a fainting spell took him, and as he sank to the ground the old
bull sprang forward on top of him, and instantly they rushed upon
him and he was soon trampled to a jelly. The herd then moved to
other parts.
The elk wife concluded that something had happened to her husband
and determined upon going in search of him. As she was very fleet
of foot it did not take her long to arrive at the lone tree. She
noticed the blood splashed on the base of the tree, and small
pieces of flesh stamped into the earth. Looking closer, she
noticed something white in the dust. Stooping and picking it out
of the dust, she drew forth the cluster of different colored
feathers which had been fastened to her husband's forehead. She at
once took the cluster of feathers, and going to the east side of
the ridge, heated stones and erected a wickieup, placed the
feathers inside, and getting water, she sprinkled the stones, and
this caused a thick vapor in the wickieup. She continued this for
a long time, when she heard something moving inside the wickieup.
Then a voice spoke up, saying: "Whoever you are, pour some more
water on and I will be all right." So the woman got more water and
poured it on the rocks. "That will do now, I want to dry off."
She plucked a pile of sage and in handing it in to him, he
recognized his elk wife's hand.
They went back home and shortly after the buffalo, hearing about
him coming back to life, decided to make war on him and kill him
and his wife, she being the one who brought him back to life. The
woman, hearing of this, had posts set in the ground and a strong
platform placed on top. When the buffalo came, her husband, her
son and herself, were seated upon the bough platform, and the
buffalo could not reach them. She flouted her red blanket in their
faces, which made the buffalo wild with rage. The hunter's friends
came to his rescue, and so fast were they killing the buffalo that
they took flight and rushed away, never more to bother Pretty
Feather Forehead.
THE FOUR BROTHERS
OR
INYANHOKSILA (STONE BOY)
Alone and apart from their tribe dwelt four orphan brothers. They
had erected a very comfortable hut, although the materials used
were only willows, hay, birch bark, and adobe mud. After the
completion of their hut, the oldest brother laid out the different
kinds of work to be done by the four of them. He and the second
and third brothers were to do all the hunting, and the youngest
brother was to do the house work, cook the meals, and keep plenty
of wood on hand at all times.
As his older brothers would leave for their hunting very early
every morning, and would not return till late at night, the little
fellow always found plenty of spare time to gather into little
piles fine dry wood for their winter use.
Thus the four brothers lived happily for a long time. One day
while out gathering and piling up wood, the boy heard a rustling in
the leaves and looking around he saw a young woman standing in the
cherry bushes, smiling at him.
"Who are you, and where did you come from?" asked the boy, in
surprise. "I am an orphan girl and have no relatives living. I
came from the village west of here. I learned from rabbit that
there were four orphan brothers living here all alone, and that the
youngest was keeping house for his older brothers, so I thought I
would come over and see if I couldn't have them adopt me as their
sister, so that I might keep house for them, as I am very poor and
have no relations, neither have I a home."
She looked so pitiful and sad that the boy thought to himself, "I
will take her home with me, poor girl, no matter what my brothers
think or say." Then he said to her: "Come on, tanke (sister). You
may go home with me; I am sure my older brothers will be glad to
have you for our sister."
When they arrived at the hut, the girl hustled about and cooked up
a fine hot supper, and when the brothers returned they were
surprised to see a girl sitting by the fire in their hut. After
they had entered the youngest brother got up and walked outside,
and a short time after the oldest brother followed him
out. "Who is that girl, and where did she come from?" he asked his
brother. Whereupon the brother told him the whole story. Upon
hearing this the oldest brother felt very sorry for the poor orphan
girl and going back into the hut he spoke to the girl, saying:
"Sister, you are an orphan, the same as we; you have no relatives,
no home. We will be your brothers, and our poor hut shall be your
home. Henceforth call us brothers, and you will be our sister."
"Oh, how happy I am now that you take me as your sister. I will be
to you all as though we were of the same father and mother," said
the girl. And true to her word, she looked after everything of her
brothers and kept the house in such fine shape that the brothers
blessed the day that she came to their poor little hut. She always
had an extra buckskin suit and two pairs of moccasins hanging at
the head of each one's bed. Buffalo, deer, antelope, bear, wolf,
wildcat, mountain lion and beaver skins she tanned by the dozen,
and piled nicely in one corner of the hut.
When the Indians have walked a great distance and are very tired,
they have great faith in painting their feet, claiming that paint
eases the pain and rests their feet.
After their return from a long day's journey, when they would be
lying down resting, the sister would get her paint and mix it with
the deer tallow and rub the paint on her brother's feet, painting
them up to their ankles. The gentle touch of her hands, and the
soothing qualities of the tallow and paint soon put them into a
deep, dreamless steep.
Many such kind actions on her part won the hearts of the brothers,
and never was a full blood sister loved more than was this poor
orphan girl, who had been taken as their adopted sister. In the
morning when they arose, the sister always combed their long black
silken scalp locks and painted the circle around the scalp lock a
bright vermillion.
When the hunters would return with a goodly supply of beef, the
sister would hurry and relieve them of their packs, hanging each
one high enough from the ground so the prowling dogs and coyotes
could not reach them. The hunters each had a post on which to hang
his bow and flint head arrows. (Good hunters never laid their
arrows on the ground, as it was considered unlucky to the hunter
who let his arrows touch the earth after they had been out
of the quiver). They were all perfectly happy, until one day the
older brother surprised them all by saying: "We have a plentiful
supply of meat on hand at present to last us for a week or so. I
am going for a visit to the village west of us, so you boys all
stay at home and help sister. Also gather as much wood as you can
and I will be back again in four days. On my return we will resume
our hunting and commence getting our year's supply of meat."
He left the next morning, and the last they saw of him was while he
stood at the top of the long range of hills west of their home.
Four days had come and gone and no sign of the oldest brother.
"I am afraid that our brother has met with some accident," said the
sister. "I am afraid so, too," said the next oldest. "I must go
and search for him; he may be in some trouble where a little help
would get him out." The second brother followed the direction his
brother had taken, and when he came to the top of the long range of
hills he sat down and gazed long and steadily down into the long
valley with a beautiful creek winding through it. Across the
valley was a long plain stretching for miles beyond and
finally ending at the foot of another range of hills, the
counterpart of the one upon which he sat.
After noting the different landmarks carefully, he arose and slowly
started down the slope and soon came to the creek he had seen from
the top of the range. Great was his surprise on arriving at the
creek to find what a difference there was in the appearance
of it from the range and where he stood. From the range it
appeared to be a quiet, harmless, laughing stream. Now he saw it
to be a muddy, boiling, bubbling torrent, with high perpendicular
banks. For a long time he stood, thinking which way to go, up or
down stream. He had just decided to go down stream, when, on
chancing to look up, he noticed a thin column of smoke slowly
ascending from a little knoll. He approached the place cautiously
and noticed a door placed into the creek bank on the opposite side
of the stream. As he stood looking at the door, wondering who
could be living in a place like that, it suddenly opened and a very
old appearing woman came out and stood looking around her. Soon
she spied the young man, and said to him: "My grandchild, where did
you come from and whither are you bound?" The young man answered:
"I came from east of this ridge and am in search of my oldest
brother, who came over in this direction five days ago and who has
not yet returned."
"Your brother stopped here and ate his dinner with me, and then
left, traveling towards the west," said the old witch, for such she
was. "Now, grandson, come across on that little log bridge up the
stream there and have your dinner with me. I have
it all cooked now and just stepped outside to see if there might
not be some hungry traveler about, whom I could invite in to eat
dinner with me." The young man went up the stream a little
distance and found a couple of small logs which had been placed
across the stream to serve as a bridge. He crossed over and went
down to the old woman's dugout hut. "Come in grandson, and eat.
I know you must be hungry."
The young man sat down and ate a real hearty meal. On finishing he
arose and said: "Grandmother, I thank you for your meal and
kindness to me. I would stay and visit with you awhile, as I know
it must be very lonely here for you, but I am very anxious to find
my brother, so I must be going. On my return I will stop with my
brother and we will pay you a little visit."
"Very well, grandson, but before you go, I wish you would do me a
little favor. Your brother did it for me before he left, and cured
me, but it has come back on me again. I am subject to very severe
pains along the left side of my backbone, all the way from my
shoulder blade down to where my ribs attach to my backbone, and the
only way I get any relief from the pain is to have some one kick me
along the side." (She was a witch, and concealed in her robe a
long sharp steel spike. It was placed so that the last kick they
would give her, their foot would hit the spike and they would
instantly drop off into a swoon, as if dead.)
"If I won't hurt you too much, grandmother, I certainly will be
glad to do it for you," said the young man, little thinking he
would be the one to get hurt.
"No, grandson, don't be afraid of hurting me; the harder you kick
the longer the pain stays away." She laid down on the floor and
rolled over on to her right side, so he could get a good chance to
kick the left side where she said the pain was located.
As he moved back to give the first kick, he glanced along the floor
and he noticed a long object wrapped in a blanket, lying against
the opposite wall. He thought it looked strange and was going to
stop and investigate, but just then the witch cried out as if in
pain. "Hurry up, grandson, I am going to die if you don't hurry
and start in kicking." "I can investigate after I get through with
her," thought he, so he started in kicking and every kick he would
give her she would cry: "Harder, kick harder." He had to kick
seven times before he would get to the end of the pain, so he let
out as hard as he could drive, and when he came to the last kick he
hit the spike, and driving it through his foot, fell down in a dead
left, he stepped forward and placed his hand on the one next to the
right. Thanks to his boy, if he hadn't put that little stem of
grass on his mother's hair, the father could never have picked out
his wife, as the four looked as much alike as four peas. Next came
the four boy calves, and as they advanced they commenced dancing,
and his son was shaking his head and flopping his ears and
switching his tail. The father was going to pick out his boy, when
a fainting spell took him, and as he sank to the ground the old
bull sprang forward on top of him, and instantly they rushed upon
him and he was soon trampled to a jelly. The herd then moved to
other parts.
The elk wife concluded that something had happened to her husband
and determined upon going in search of him. As she was very fleet
of foot it did not take her long to arrive at the lone tree. She
noticed the blood splashed on the base of the tree, and small
pieces of flesh stamped into the earth. Looking closer, she
noticed something white in the dust. Stooping and picking it out
of the dust, she drew forth the cluster of different colored
feathers which had been fastened to her husband's forehead. She at
once took the cluster of feathers, and going to the east side of
the ridge, heated stones and erected a wickieup, placed the
feathers inside, and getting water, she sprinkled the stones, and
this caused a thick vapor in the wickieup. She continued this for
a long time, when she heard something moving inside the wickieup.
Then a voice spoke up, saying: "Whoever you are, pour some more
water on and I will be all right." So the woman got more water and
poured it on the rocks. "That will do now, I want to dry off."
She plucked a pile of sage and in handing it in to him, he
recognized his elk wife's hand.
They went back home and shortly after the buffalo, hearing about
him coming back to life, decided to make war on him and kill him
and his wife, she being the one who brought him back to life. The
woman, hearing of this, had posts set in the ground and a strong
platform placed on top. When the buffalo came, her husband, her
son and herself, were seated upon the bough platform, and the
buffalo could not reach them. She flouted her red blanket in their
faces, which made the buffalo wild with rage. The hunter's friends
came to his rescue, and so fast were they killing the buffalo that
they took flight and rushed away, never more to bother Pretty
Feather Forehead.
THE FOUR BROTHERS
OR
INYANHOKSILA (STONE BOY)
Alone and apart from their tribe dwelt four orphan brothers. They
had erected a very comfortable hut, although the materials used
were only willows, hay, birch bark, and adobe mud. After the
completion of their hut, the oldest brother laid out the different
kinds of work to be done by the four of them. He and the second
and third brothers were to do all the hunting, and the youngest
brother was to do the house work, cook the meals, and keep plenty
of wood on hand at all times.
As his older brothers would leave for their hunting very early
every morning, and would not return till late at night, the little
fellow always found plenty of spare time to gather into little
piles fine dry wood for their winter use.
Thus the four brothers lived happily for a long time. One day
while out gathering and piling up wood, the boy heard a rustling in
the leaves and looking around he saw a young woman standing in the
cherry bushes, smiling at him.
"Who are you, and where did you come from?" asked the boy, in
surprise. "I am an orphan girl and have no relatives living. I
came from the village west of here. I learned from rabbit that
there were four orphan brothers living here all alone, and that the
youngest was keeping house for his older brothers, so I thought I
would come over and see if I couldn't have them adopt me as their
sister, so that I might keep house for them, as I am very poor and
have no relations, neither have I a home."
She looked so pitiful and sad that the boy thought to himself, "I
will take her home with me, poor girl, no matter what my brothers
think or say." Then he said to her: "Come on, tanke (sister). You
may go home with me; I am sure my older brothers will be glad to
have you for our sister."
When they arrived at the hut, the girl hustled about and cooked up
a fine hot supper, and when the brothers returned they were
surprised to see a girl sitting by the fire in their hut. After
they had entered the youngest brother got up and walked outside,
and a short time after the oldest brother followed him
out. "Who is that girl, and where did she come from?" he asked his
brother. Whereupon the brother told him the whole story. Upon
hearing this the oldest brother felt very sorry for the poor orphan
girl and going back into the hut he spoke to the girl, saying:
"Sister, you are an orphan, the same as we; you have no relatives,
no home. We will be your brothers, and our poor hut shall be your
home. Henceforth call us brothers, and you will be our sister."
"Oh, how happy I am now that you take me as your sister. I will be
to you all as though we were of the same father and mother," said
the girl. And true to her word, she looked after everything of her
brothers and kept the house in such fine shape that the brothers
blessed the day that she came to their poor little hut. She always
had an extra buckskin suit and two pairs of moccasins hanging at
the head of each one's bed. Buffalo, deer, antelope, bear, wolf,
wildcat, mountain lion and beaver skins she tanned by the dozen,
and piled nicely in one corner of the hut.
When the Indians have walked a great distance and are very tired,
they have great faith in painting their feet, claiming that paint
eases the pain and rests their feet.
After their return from a long day's journey, when they would be
lying down resting, the sister would get her paint and mix it with
the deer tallow and rub the paint on her brother's feet, painting
them up to their ankles. The gentle touch of her hands, and the
soothing qualities of the tallow and paint soon put them into a
deep, dreamless steep.
Many such kind actions on her part won the hearts of the brothers,
and never was a full blood sister loved more than was this poor
orphan girl, who had been taken as their adopted sister. In the
morning when they arose, the sister always combed their long black
silken scalp locks and painted the circle around the scalp lock a
bright vermillion.
When the hunters would return with a goodly supply of beef, the
sister would hurry and relieve them of their packs, hanging each
one high enough from the ground so the prowling dogs and coyotes
could not reach them. The hunters each had a post on which to hang
his bow and flint head arrows. (Good hunters never laid their
arrows on the ground, as it was considered unlucky to the hunter
who let his arrows touch the earth after they had been out
of the quiver). They were all perfectly happy, until one day the
older brother surprised them all by saying: "We have a plentiful
supply of meat on hand at present to last us for a week or so. I
am going for a visit to the village west of us, so you boys all
stay at home and help sister. Also gather as much wood as you can
and I will be back again in four days. On my return we will resume
our hunting and commence getting our year's supply of meat."
He left the next morning, and the last they saw of him was while he
stood at the top of the long range of hills west of their home.
Four days had come and gone and no sign of the oldest brother.
"I am afraid that our brother has met with some accident," said the
sister. "I am afraid so, too," said the next oldest. "I must go
and search for him; he may be in some trouble where a little help
would get him out." The second brother followed the direction his
brother had taken, and when he came to the top of the long range of
hills he sat down and gazed long and steadily down into the long
valley with a beautiful creek winding through it. Across the
valley was a long plain stretching for miles beyond and
finally ending at the foot of another range of hills, the
counterpart of the one upon which he sat.
After noting the different landmarks carefully, he arose and slowly
started down the slope and soon came to the creek he had seen from
the top of the range. Great was his surprise on arriving at the
creek to find what a difference there was in the appearance
of it from the range and where he stood. From the range it
appeared to be a quiet, harmless, laughing stream. Now he saw it
to be a muddy, boiling, bubbling torrent, with high perpendicular
banks. For a long time he stood, thinking which way to go, up or
down stream. He had just decided to go down stream, when, on
chancing to look up, he noticed a thin column of smoke slowly
ascending from a little knoll. He approached the place cautiously
and noticed a door placed into the creek bank on the opposite side
of the stream. As he stood looking at the door, wondering who
could be living in a place like that, it suddenly opened and a very
old appearing woman came out and stood looking around her. Soon
she spied the young man, and said to him: "My grandchild, where did
you come from and whither are you bound?" The young man answered:
"I came from east of this ridge and am in search of my oldest
brother, who came over in this direction five days ago and who has
not yet returned."
"Your brother stopped here and ate his dinner with me, and then
left, traveling towards the west," said the old witch, for such she
was. "Now, grandson, come across on that little log bridge up the
stream there and have your dinner with me. I have
it all cooked now and just stepped outside to see if there might
not be some hungry traveler about, whom I could invite in to eat
dinner with me." The young man went up the stream a little
distance and found a couple of small logs which had been placed
across the stream to serve as a bridge. He crossed over and went
down to the old woman's dugout hut. "Come in grandson, and eat.
I know you must be hungry."
The young man sat down and ate a real hearty meal. On finishing he
arose and said: "Grandmother, I thank you for your meal and
kindness to me. I would stay and visit with you awhile, as I know
it must be very lonely here for you, but I am very anxious to find
my brother, so I must be going. On my return I will stop with my
brother and we will pay you a little visit."
"Very well, grandson, but before you go, I wish you would do me a
little favor. Your brother did it for me before he left, and cured
me, but it has come back on me again. I am subject to very severe
pains along the left side of my backbone, all the way from my
shoulder blade down to where my ribs attach to my backbone, and the
only way I get any relief from the pain is to have some one kick me
along the side." (She was a witch, and concealed in her robe a
long sharp steel spike. It was placed so that the last kick they
would give her, their foot would hit the spike and they would
instantly drop off into a swoon, as if dead.)
"If I won't hurt you too much, grandmother, I certainly will be
glad to do it for you," said the young man, little thinking he
would be the one to get hurt.
"No, grandson, don't be afraid of hurting me; the harder you kick
the longer the pain stays away." She laid down on the floor and
rolled over on to her right side, so he could get a good chance to
kick the left side where she said the pain was located.
As he moved back to give the first kick, he glanced along the floor
and he noticed a long object wrapped in a blanket, lying against
the opposite wall. He thought it looked strange and was going to
stop and investigate, but just then the witch cried out as if in
pain. "Hurry up, grandson, I am going to die if you don't hurry
and start in kicking." "I can investigate after I get through with
her," thought he, so he started in kicking and every kick he would
give her she would cry: "Harder, kick harder." He had to kick
seven times before he would get to the end of the pain, so he let
out as hard as he could drive, and when he came to the last kick he
hit the spike, and driving it through his foot, fell down in a dead
- advanced [əd´vɑ:nst]
a.先进的；高级的 (初中英语单词) - sprang [spræŋ] spring 的过去式 (初中英语单词)
- instantly [´instəntli] ad.立即，立刻 (初中英语单词)
- cluster [´klʌstə] n.一串 v.群集；丛生 (初中英语单词)
- forehead [´fɔrid] n.额，前部 (初中英语单词)
- shortly [´ʃɔ:tli] ad.立刻，马上；不久 (初中英语单词)
- platform [´plætfɔ:m] n.(平)台；讲台；站台 (初中英语单词)
- rescue [´reskju:] vt.&n.救援；挽救 (初中英语单词)
- flight [flait] n.逃走；飞行；班机 (初中英语单词)
- bother [´bɔðə] v.打扰 n.麻烦(事) (初中英语单词)
- standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)
- rabbit [´ræbit] n.兔子，野兔 (初中英语单词)
- henceforth [´hens´fɔ:θ] ad.今后；从今以后 (初中英语单词)
- beaver [´bi:və] n.海狸；獭皮(帽) (初中英语单词)
- nicely [naisli] ad.恰好地；谨慎地 (初中英语单词)
- painting [´peintiŋ] n.绘画；(油)画；着色 (初中英语单词)
- circle [´sə:kəl] n.圆圈 v.环绕；盘旋 (初中英语单词)
- relieve [ri´li:v] v.救济，援救；减轻 (初中英语单词)
- commence [kə´mens] vt.&vi.开始 (初中英语单词)
- steadily [´stedili] ad.坚定地；不断地 (初中英语单词)
- stream [stri:m] n.河 vi.流出；飘扬 (初中英语单词)
- column [´kɔləm] n.柱；柱状物；纵队 (初中英语单词)
- awhile [ə´wail] ad.少顷；片刻 (初中英语单词)
- lonely [´ləunli] a.孤独的；无人烟的 (初中英语单词)
- anxious [´æŋkʃəs] a.担忧的；渴望的 (初中英语单词)
- attach [ə´tætʃ] v.附；使隶属；使依恋 (初中英语单词)
- relief [ri´li:f] n.救济；援救；减轻 (初中英语单词)
- grandmother [´græn,mʌðə] n.(外)祖母 (初中英语单词)
- saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)
- buffalo [´bʌfələu] n.水牛；野牛 (高中英语单词)
- hearing [´hiəriŋ] n.听力；听证会；审讯 (高中英语单词)
- decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
- orphan [´ɔ:fən] n.&a.孤儿 vt.使成孤儿 (高中英语单词)
- learned [´lə:nid] a.有学问的，博学的 (高中英语单词)
- pitiful [´pitifəl] a.可怜的；慈悲的 (高中英语单词)
- hanging [´hæŋiŋ] n.绞刑 a.悬挂着的 (高中英语单词)
- goodly [´gudli] a.适意的；漂亮的 (高中英语单词)
- perfectly [´pə:fiktli] ad.理想地；完美地 (高中英语单词)
- ending [´endiŋ] n.结尾，结局 (高中英语单词)
- harmless [´hɑ:mləs] a.无害的，无恶意的 (高中英语单词)
- torrent [´tɔrənt] n.奔流，激流，洪流；迸发 (高中英语单词)
- hearty [´hɑ:ti] a.热忱的；强健的 (高中英语单词)
- investigate [in´vestigeit] v.调查(研究) (高中英语单词)
- calves [kɑ:vz] calf的复数 (英语四级单词)
- gathering [´gæðəriŋ] n.集会，聚集 (英语四级单词)
- whereupon [,weərə´pɔn] ad.在什么上面；因此 (英语四级单词)
- antelope [´æntiləup] n.羚羊 (英语四级单词)
- unlucky [ʌn´lʌki] a.倒霉的，不幸的 (英语四级单词)
- grandson [´grænsʌn] n.孙子；外孙子 (英语四级单词)
- bridge [bridʒ] n.桥(梁)；鼻梁；桥牌 (英语四级单词)
- backbone [´bækbəun] n.脊骨；骨干；支柱 (英语四级单词)
- hunting [´hʌntiŋ] n.打猎 (英语六级单词)
- tallow [´tæləu] n.脂，兽脂 (英语六级单词)
文章标签:名著
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