Coyote and Fox (or Wolf) were travelling. They went near the Sun's house. There they saw a bag hanging from the end of a pole. They asked each other, "What is in that bag?" Neither could tell. Fox smoked his pipe, and questioned it. The pipe answered, "Sun-rays." Coyote defecated, and questioned his excrements. They answered, "Hot wind." Now, they disputed as to who was right. Fox told Coyote to pull down the bag. Coyote tried in vain to reach it. Then he tried to push over the pole. He jumped at it, and tried to perforate it with the end of his arrow-flaker. Finally he succeeded in piercing it at the bottom, and made a small hole. Something bright came out. Fox said, "That must be a sun-ray; pull it down!" Coyote took hold of it, and burned his hand. Fox said, "I will shoot it." He hit the bag with a large-pointed arrow and burst it. Then the hot wind and the sun-rays came out and made a great noise. Coyote and Fox ran away. The people in the lodge heard the noise when the bag burst. They ran out, and pursued Coyote and Fox. When these were nearly overtaken, they turned around, and threatened to shoot the Sun people. The latter at once became afraid, and ran back.
Coyote was travelling, and came to a country where lived men and women who knew not how to propagate. He showed them how to mate. The women would not let him go until he was thoroughly fatigued. Then he ran away, and they chased him. After that the women of that country bore children.
(7) COYOTE AND THE MARMOTS.1
(From Upper Uta'mqt and Nicola Valley.)Coyote came to a pass in the mountains (some say on Upper Salmon River) inhabited by two Marmots, who sat one on each side behind rocks. When people passed through, they clashed the rocks together and killed them. Nothing could pass through except the wind. Coyote heard them, and determined to pass through. When he was in the middle, the rocks began to shut; but he placed his arrow-flaker of antler across, and they could not shut. He transformed the Marmots into animals, and the rocks into stationary cliffs. There is a narrow passage between two cliffs, through which the trail passes now.
(8) COYOTE IS ATTACKED BY COMB AND AWL.2
(From Nicola Valley.)Coyote came to an underground lodge, which he entered. He saw no one inside; but everything looked in order, as if people lived there. He saw many nice things in the house,-- bows and arrows, quivers, war-clubs, baskets, and bags. He picked up a nice comb and examined it. He thought he would take it. As he turned around to go away, he heard people murmuring. He looked round, but saw nothing. He proceeded to climb the ladder. Then the comb scratched and combed him violently. Coyote said, "Stop! I will put you back." Then he thought he would take an awl. Again he heard people murmuring; and as he started to run away, the awl pierced him. He put it down in surprise. Then he look a pair of fine stones for smoothing arrows, and the same happened. The stones attacked him, jumping up and down, and scratching off his skin. Lastly he took a stone hammer, and it hit him so hard on the head that he was stunned. Then he ran away. He was angry, and cried out, "You shall no longer be people and have power to attack: henceforth you shall be mere tools and slaves of people."
Coyote was travelling through a country of lakes and swamps. He saw a large flock of geese flying overhead, and wished he could kill and eat them. He cut a club of wood, and whistled. They halted, and circled around. He clapped his hands, and they all fell down. He ran among them and clubbed them; but they merely cackled, laughed, and flapped their wings. In the noise and confusion, Coyote could not see where he was hitting. The wings caused a strong wind; and, as they rose, Coyote was taken off his feet. He was carried along by them. He caught at the swamp-grass tops, then at the Willow-bush tops, then at the tree tops, but could not hold on. He was carried away to a point above the middle of a near-by swamp, where he dropped head first into the mud, and could not extricate himself. The mosquitoes, flies, and insects bit his legs and his backside and crawled into him. At last Fox came along and pulled him out.
(10) COYOTE, FOX, AND THE EGG GATHERERS.
(From Nicola Valley.)Coyote and Fox had cooked some fat meat, and, after eating, fell sound asleep. Some women who found them asleep thought they would have some fun with them. They tickled their scrota with feathers, but the two slept on. Then they changed their noses.4 When the two awoke, they laughed at each other, but neither thought his own face had also been changed. They were thirsty because they had eaten so much fat: therefore they went down to a lake to drink. When they saw by their reflections how ugly they had become, they quarreled, each blaming the other for being the cause of his changed appearance. They heard people laughing. Then they knew that a trick had been played on them. They followed the tracks of the women, and saw them busy gathering ducks' eggs in a swamp. (The following part of the tale corresponds to the story told in Teit, JE 8: 310.)
1 RBAE 31 : 613 (No. 9)
2 RBAE 31 : 702
3 JE 8: 30
4 Some informants claim that they interchanged them
5 BBAE 59: 301 (note 2).
