102. The Turtles and the Runner.
The Turtles were four brothers who were slow and clumsy. They all looked so much alike that one could not be distinguished from the other. The people laughed a great deal at them because of their slowness. One man among the people was a great runner, and easily surpassed all others. He boasted a good deal of his swiftness. One day the Turtles dressed them-selves all alike, put up their hair, and painted their faces alike. Then, going to the race-course, they dug three holes along it, one hole being near the goal, another about two-thirds, of the way, and one about one-third of the way. In these, three of the brothers hid, while the fourth one went and challenged the runner to a race. All the people laughed ; but the Turtle showed he was in earnest by betting all his goods, and the runner and his friends bet an equal amount also. No people were allowed to see the race ; and the runner, before starting, promised never to look behind him. The Turtle was soon left behind, and the runner said to himself, "It is as I expected. The Turtle cannot run at all. He was very foolish to run against me, and bet all his goods on the race." Just then he saw the Turtle running quite a bit ahead of him, (it was one of the brothers who had got up out of his hole), and was surprised. He ran fast, and soon overtook him. When he had run past him quite a distance, he said to himself, "I will take it easy. He cannot catch up with me.'Soon he saw the Turtle running ahead of him again (it was the third brother), and ran fast to overtake him. Leaving him far behind, he now neared the goal, saying to himself. "I am only a little distance from the goal: he cannot possibly overtake me. I will walk." Just then he noticed
the Turtle (it was the fourth brother) very close to the goal: so he ran at his utmost speed to overtake him, but was too late. The Turtle reached the goal first. The other three brothers hid themselves, and' the Turtle who won went back with the runner to claim the goods the people had bet. The runner thought the Turtle was great in magic, and the people never laughed at the brothers any more.103. The Girl who sought her Brothers.
A man lived with his wife, who was pregnant, and their four sons, who were yet children. He said to his wife, "I do not like boys. If your child is a girl, I will kill all our sons." Now she knew her child was to be a girl. and she took pity on the boys. She told them their father might kill them, so she advised them to leave, and prepared much food, clothes, and moccasins for them. The food and clothes she reduced to many times less than their natural size and weight, so that each boy's pack consisted of a very small parcel. They left the lodge while their father was away hunting, and their mother told them to travel to some very far country. They walked one behind the other. The eldest aways took the lead and made the ground contract before them, so that in a short time they had covered a great distance. Nevertheless they journeyed many moons before they reached the distant country in the east, where they had made up their minds to settle.
