Why Blackfeet Never Kill Mice
by
(Indian Why Story)
Muskrat and his grandmother were gathering wood for the camp the next morning, when they came to an old buffalo skull. The plains were dotted with these relics of the chase, for already the hide-hunting white man had played havoc with the great herds of buffalo. This skull was in a grove of cottonwood-trees near the river, and as they approached two Mice scampered into it to hide. Muskrat, in great glee, secured a stick and was about to turn the skull over and kill the Mice, when his grandmother said: “No, our people never kill Mice. Your grandfather will tell you why if you ask him. The Mice-people are our friends and we treat them as such. Even small people can be good friends, you know–remember that.”
All the day the boy wondered why the Mice-people should not be harmed; and just at dark he came for me to accompany him to War Eagle’s lodge. On the way he told me what his grandmother had said, and that he intended to ask for the reason, as soon as we arrived. We found the other children already there, and almost before we had seated ourselves, Muskrat asked:
“Grandfather, why must we never kill the Mice-people? Grandmother said that you knew.”
“Yes,” replied War Eagle, “I do know and you must know. Therefore I shall tell you all to-night why the Mice-people must be let alone and allowed to do as they please, for we owe them much; much more than we can ever pay. Yes–they are great people, as you will see.
“It happened long, long ago, when there were few men and women on the world. OLD-man was chief of all then, and the animal-people and the bird-people were greater than our people, because we had not been on earth long and were not wise.
“There was much quarrelling among the animals and the birds. You see the Bear wanted to be chief, under OLD-man, and so did the Beaver. Almost every night they would have a council and quarrel over it. Beside the Bear and Beaver, there were other animals, and also birds, that thought they had the right to be chief. They couldn’t agree and the quarrelling grew worse as time went on. Some said the greatest thief should be chosen. Others thought the wisest one should be the leader; while some said the swiftest traveller was the one they wanted. So it went on and on until they were most all enemies instead of friends, and you could hear them quarrelling almost every night, until OLD-man came along that way.
“He heard about the trouble. I forget who told him, but I think it was the Rabbit. Anyhow he visited the council where the quarrelling was going on and listened to what each one had to say. It took until almost daylight, too. He listened to it all–every bit. When they had finished talking and the quarrelling commenced as usual, he said, ‘stop!’ and they did stop.
“Then he said to them: ‘I will settle this thing right here and right now, so that there will be no more rows over it, forever.’
“He opened his paint sack and took from it a small, polished bone. This he held up in the firelight, so that they might all see it, and he said:
“‘This will settle the quarrel. You all see this bone in my right hand, don’t you?’
“‘Yes,’ they replied.
“‘Well, now you watch the bone and my hands, too, for they are quick and cunning.’
“OLD-man began to sing the gambling song and to slip the bone from one hand to the other so rapidly and smoothly that they were all puzzled. Finally he stopped singing and held out his hands–both shut tight, and both with their backs up.
“‘Which of my hands holds the bone now?’ he asked them.
“Some said it was in the right hand and others claimed that it was the left hand that held it. OLD-man asked the Bear to name the hand that held the bone, and the Bear did; but when OLD-man opened that hand it was empty–the bone was not there. Then everybody laughed at the Bear. OLD-man smiled a little and began to sing and again pass the bone.