10. THE BUNGLING HOST.
(Second Version.)
(Continued)When Kingfisher came, the five sticks were all ready. Coyote told his wife to get the sticks, since he needed them. "What are you going to do with them?" asked his wife. "You don't know how to use them." Coyote took the sticks and climbed the tree. He whistled, just as Kingfisher had done, and then jumped down. Instead of going through the hole, however, he landed on the ice and almost killed himself. His son was watching him, and called out, "My father has fallen down on the ice!" Kingfisher carried him home. Then he took the sticks, flew up into the tree, dived, and caught fish for Coyote. Then in disgust he went home, after telling Coyote's wife to put water on Coyote's head and cure him. Coyote awoke with a bandage around his head. That was because smart Coyote was trying to get the best of everybody.
When Coyote got well,, he went to see his son-in-law, Elk. Elk asked his wife, "What are we going to eat?" He cut a sharp stick, put it into the fire, bent it over, and covered it with ashes. Then he put hot stones into a bucket. With his knife he cut off the shoulder of his wife's dress. He cut the piece into strips, and put them in the pot to cook. The dress grew together again without the sign of a hole. When he took the stick from the ashes and the pot from the fire, the former had turned into intestines filled with meat, and the dress had become fat meat. They gave it to Coyote, who ate as much as he could hold. Then Elk said to his wife, "Give me the horn (kapa'tkats) and a bucket." Then he went out and inserted the horn in his anus. He put the excrements into the bucket, and these turned into camas-roots. He gave them to Coyote together with some dried meat, and told him to take them home.
A few days later Elk returned the visit, having been invited to do so by Coyote. When he came to the house, Coyote asked, "What are we going to eat?" He took his stone axe and cut down the limb of a tree, bent it back, and tied it with bark. Then he put it on the fire, just as Elk had done, and covered it with ashes. Coyote's wife was busy with some other work: therefore he got the pot ready and heated the stones. Then he took his knife and cut a piece off his wife's dress, which was very old. "Why are you doing that?" she cried. Coyote continued to cut it, as Elk had done, and proceeded to cut it into strips. Then he threw it into the boiling water. It shrivelled up into a small mass, while his wife's dress retained its hole. When she tried to sew it up, she found that it would no longer hold the stitches. The bent stick burned up and scattered coal and ashes everywhere. When Coyote went to uncover it, he found nothing but a burnt stick. Thereupon he told his wife to give him a bucket and the horn. He went out and ran the horn up his anus, but only feces came out. As a result of this, Coyote became sick and sore.
Elk then put his hand on the dress of Coyote's wife, and it became whole again. He cut pieces off and put them into the pot to boil. They turned into meat. After this he left them.
Coyote went to see his son-in-law, Beaver, who said to his wife, "Give me a stick." She did so. Ice was on the river. Beaver cut five holes. Then he took the sticks; and when he came to the first hole, he cried "Su'ksuk!" and jumped in. Before long he came out with a fish. He went to the second hole, and soon came out with another fish. He did so in the five holes; so that, when he finished, he had fish on the five sticks. Then he went back to the tent and gave them to Coyote, who ate as much as he could. Beaver told him to take home the rest. Coyote left, after having invited Beaver to return his visit.
A few days passed, and Beaver came to call on Coyote. Coyote made his five sticks ready, and made five holes in the ice. He called to his wife for the sticks and went out. He jumped into the first hole, but did not come up again. Coyote's son was watching down below, where the ice was thin. Coyote floated down until the boy could see him through the ice. He broke the ice, took him out, and laid him down. Then Beaver stepped over him and brought him back to life. Then he took the five sticks, jumped into each hole, and came out with fish, which he gave Coyote. Then he went home, and Coyote had plenty of fish.
Coyote went to Wolf next. Wolf said to his wife, "I wonder what we shall eat!" Then, after painting his face and putting feathers in his hair, he went out. Coyote, who was watching him, saw five deer come by. Wolf did not use his arrows, but merely shook his deer-hoof rattles, and the five deer fell down. He dragged them to the tent, and Coyote ate all he could hold. Wolf told him to take all he wanted of what remained. Coyote invited Wolf to come and see him, and left.
Wolf's wife told him not to go to Coyote; "for," she said, "he has nothing to give you." Wolf went, just the same. When he arrived there, Coyote had his feathers and deer-hoof rattles ready. He painted his face and went out, as Wolf had done. The deer came by. Coyote shook his rattle and sang, but the deer went right on. So he told his son-in-law, "I don't know what the matter is, I must have some bad medicine." Wolf then took his arrows and rattles and killed the five deer at once. Leaving them for Coyote, he went home. Coyote now had plenty of food.
After this Coyote visited another one of his sons-in-law, Mountain Sheep, who lived in a rocky place. The trail that led to the tent was just wide enough for a man to walk on. On either side was a precipice. Coyote came to the tent, and Mountain-Sheep said to his wife, "Our meat is all dry, I shall have to go out and look for fresh venison."
