Wisagatcak

When this happened, he made a raft of logs and got on that. He took aboard a pair of every kind of animal and stayed there with them for two weeks. They drifted about, for there was no chance to anchor anywhere. While all this happened the Big Beaver were conjuring against Wisagatcak to revenge themselves for breaking their dam. After two weeks had passed, Wisagatcak wished to know the depth of the water underneath the raft so he took Muskrat and tied a long string to his feet and told him to dive under the water and bring up some mud.

The rat went down; he was unable to reach the bottom and was drowned before Wisagatcak could pull him up. Wisagatcak waited for three days and then sent the crow to see if he could find any dry land. He told Crow if he found any he was to bring back some moss; but Crow came back empty-billed.

When Wisagatcak learned this, he was frightened. He had a little moss on his raft and he took it and began to conjure. The next day, he told Wolf to take the moss in his mouth and run around the raft with it. Wolf did as he was told and as soon as he ran around the raft, earth began to appear and grow on it. Wolf continued to run around for a week while the land kept on growing larger. It continued to grow for two weeks. At the end of this time. Wolf had made it so big that he never came back. Since the earth is built over water, this accounts for the existence of subterranean springs.

When Wolf had been gone a week and had not yet returned, Wisagatcak said to the other animals, “Well, the ground must now be big enough for us to live on.” Beaver asked Wisagatcak. “How are we going to live? We are now eating willows and poplars and there are as yet no trees on the earth for us to live on.” Wisagatcak replied, “Just wait, you will need a little creek to live in also.” “Yes,” said Beaver. “I’ll do something tonight,” said Wisagatcak.

That night Wisagatcak conjured again. He dug down through the earth over the raft to get a log from it; but the earth was now so great he could not find any trace of his raft. When Wisagatcak failed to get even a stick he said to Beaver, “Well, I’ll make a creek for you, and you may live on the roots of the grass until trees grow up.” That is why Beaver eats certain white roots to this day although his proper diet is bark.

When Wisagatcak had built the creek for Beaver, he dwelt in it. After a while, Wisagatcak came back and found that Beaver had dug trenches everywhere in his search for roots. He saw one beaver swimming about. “Come here brother,” he said, for he was the older brother of all the animals. The beaver refused to go. “Why do you call me,” said Beaver, “when you only wish to kill me?” Then Wisagatcak was angry and said, “I’ll never come again.” He never did.

One time, when Wisagatcak was out hunting, he saw a great number of wild fowl and said to himself, “What can I do to get them?” He was carrying a big bag and he thought he would pull up some moss and fill his bag with that. He did so, and when he had stuffed it full he went away, carrying it on his back. When the wild fowl saw Wisagatcak’s bundle, they approached and asked, “What is that you are carrying on your back?” Wisagatcak stopped and replied, “This is my ‘singing wigwam’ (sic) where I used to sing and dance.” Then he took out the moss and made a lodge of it. When the wild fowl saw the wigwam, they came over and went in. Wisagatcak said to the birds, “When I sing, take care to do everything that I say to do.” Then all the wild fowl began to dance.

After Wisagatcak had sung for some time, he cried out in the song for all the birds to shut their eyes, and dance in a circle, with their heads and necks inward and close together. When the birds did this, Wisagatcak took a cord and made a running noose of it which he threw over the necks of all the birds at once and so succeeded in strangling a great many of them. When Loon heard the dying beat of the wild fowls’ wings he began to open his eyes and peep. As soon as he saw that the birds were being killed, he cried out, “Wisagatcak is killing us,” and ran to the door. Wisagatcak pursued Loon, and just as he was escaping through the door, Wisagatcak managed to kick him squarely in the rump. This accounts for the peculiar shape of the loon’s rump bone today.

Then thought Wisagatcak to himself, “I wonder how I can cook all these birds.” He dug down under the sand by the fireplace for he intended to roast the fowls by burying them in the hot sand. In order to remember where he had put them, he left one leg of each bird sticking up above the surface. When he had done this, Wisagatcak wished to have a good sleep but before going to bed he said to his rump, “Well, you had better watch while I sleep.”

At last, someone passing by saw the tent. He waited until he was sure Wisagatcak was asleep and then he came and peeped in at the door. The faithful rump gave warning by breaking wind, Wisagatcak roused at once, jumped up, and looked about. The marauder, however, had disappeared and Wisagatcak saw no one and returned to bed. “Don’t you fool me like that again,” he said to his rump.

As soon as the intruder heard Wisagatcak snore again, he came and peeped in the tent once more. Again, Wisagatcak’s rump gave tongue. Wisagatcak leaped up and looked out, but again the culprit escaped him. As Wisagatcak could see no one, he spoke very sharply to his rump for deceiving him. Then he went back to his bed. As soon as he was asleep the man came and looked in again but this time Wisagatcak’s rump was angry because it had been reproved twice, and failed to give warning. Then the man entered Wisagatcak’s wigwam and stole all the geese and other wild fowl. The thief pulled off one foot from each and to deceive Wisagatcak stuck them up in the sand around the fire where the birds had been. At length, Wisagatcak awoke and being very hungry, he commenced to pull up his geese, but all that he could find were the feet, so he knew he had been robbed while he slept.

Wisagatcak was very angry with his rump for not warning him of the thief’s approach. So he put a stone in the fire and heated it red hot. When it was hot enough he took off his leggings and breechclout and sat upon the stone to burn his rump to punish it for its treachery. As he sat on the hot stones he began to break wind and continued to do so. “Look here now,” said Wisagatcak to his anus, “you suffer because you did not warn me.” When he had finished burning it, it was withered and shaped like everyone’s else and there was a deep crease burned in the middle. That is why mankind has the rump shaped in this way. Formerly, a man’s rump was puckered like that of a frog.

When Wisagatcak had done this, he went hurrying off and left his wigwam standing. He took his bow and arrows to hunt game, for he was very hungry since he had lost his dinner. At every step he took he broke wind, “Poop! poop! poop!” and so his rump revenged itself by warning all the game and spoiling his hunting.

At length, Wisagatcak began to starve because he could not approach the game. “Don’t make any more noise,” said he to his rump, “and I’ll give you something to eat.” There was a big scab on his rump where he had burned it, and at last it dropped off. As Wisagatcak was starving, he picked up the scab and began to eat it. He thought it was dried meat. [Some narrators claim he knew it was his scab, but others hold the contrary to be true.] The squirrel saw Wisagatcak eating the scab and he could not help laughing. “That is your own scab you are eating,” said he to Wisagatcak. Then Wisagatcak threw his scab at the birch tree and the punk of rotten birches is of that scab. Then Wisagatcak pounded the tree with a stick as well and thus he marked the bark in the way one sees it today.

After Wisagatcak had done this, he went away from there. He saw a bear eating berries. He approached the bear to shoot it but his rump broke wind and warned the bear that Wisagatcak was coming. When the bear heard and saw Wisagatcak coming he would run off, but Wisagatcak called out, “Hold on, my brother.” The bear answered, “I did not know you were a brother of mine.” Wisagatcak replied, “Don’t you know? Long ago, we were brothers; we will eat berries together. Do you see that thing sticking up out of the water there?” “No,” said the bear. “Don’t you see that thing sticking out of the water?” said Wisagatcak. “No, I see nothing,” said the bear. “Do you know what I have done?” said Wisagatcak, “Formerly, I used to see as poorly as you do, but I mashed berries and put them in my eyes.”

Then the bear thought he would like to see as well as Wisagatcak so he began to mash berries and put them in his eyes. “After I had done that,” said Wisagatcak, “I went to bed and had a short nap. I had a stone for my pillow too.” The bear did likewise. When the bear fell asleep Wisagatcak took up a big stone and mashed the bear’s head with it and killed him. [One version of this tale makes Wisagatcak turn into a bear and live with his intended victim until he got fat in the fall.] Then Wisagatcak skinned the bear. He cut it in pieces and cooked them all. He preserved the grease and intestines. He did not attempt to eat until he had cooked all of it. While he was cooking he looked up and saw Muskrat swimming in the river. As the grease would not harden, he called to the rat to take it and swim through the water with it. When Muskrat returned with the grease, Wisagatcak stripped all the flesh from his tail to reward him for his services. That is why it is so thin and skinny now, whereas formerly it was fat and broad like a beaver’s and too heavy for him. “Try now and see how fast you can go,” said Wisagatcak to Muskrat. Muskrat tried and went so fast that he broke the grease bladder and the grease and oil came out. This accounts for the smooth slick wake the muskrat leaves when swimming. It is the bear’s oil and grease calming the water.

“Now, I will eat my bear,” said Wisagatcak. He began to eat, but he was soon so full that he could hold no more. Then he went over to where two trees were standing close together. He stood between them and said, “Squeeze me until my stomach is stretched so far that I can finish my bear at one meal.” At once, the trees came together and began to squeeze Wisagatcak. When they held Wisagatcak so closely that he could not get away, they called out to all the animals to come and eat his bear.

All the animals came at once and though Wisagatcak begged the trees to let him go, they held him fast until his bear was eaten. When it was all gone, they released him. Of all the animals, Seal got the most grease, and Rabbit the least. That is why Seal is so fat and Rabbit so lean. When the trees finally released Wisagatcak, he was very angry. He started to revenge himself on them by twisting them with his hands. That is the reason some trees are spirally twisted in their growth.

Wisagatcak went away. It was late in the fall and all the birds were flying south. He told them he would like to go with them. “I can fly as well as you,” said he. He started off. The birds said to him, “If you see any people when you are flying, don’t look at them, for if you do so, you will fall down.” They all flew away and soon Wisagatcak saw some people. He looked hard at them and down he fell and was smashed to pieces. Then he resumed his human shape, for he had been a bird when he was flying.

Then the Indians he had looked at came up. He was unable to get up for some time, and whenever they felt like evacuating, they would go over and do it upon Wisagatcak. At last, an old woman came. Wisagatcak saw her approach, jumped up, and seized a stick which he shoved up her anus. He killed the old woman and ran his stick in the ground, leaving her upon it as meat is placed on a spit to roast before the fire. Then he went home.

Once Wisagatcak was traveling. As he went along he met three sisters who had never seen a man before. “Ah,” thought Wisagatcak, “I will show them something.” He had been hunting beaver and had a freshly severed beaver’s head in his hand. “Let us play a new game,” said Wisagatcak to the best looking sister. “You take hold of one jaw and I will take the other and we will sit down, place our feet together, and pull apart.” They did as Wisagatcak suggested and bracing their feet against each other, began to pull. When the woman was exerting her utmost strength, Wisagatcak let go.

Prostratam mulierem, vestibus sublatis genitalibas conspectis, stupravit. Ilia exclamavit, “Wisagatcak me interficiti” Tunc sorores eum detrahere, “minime mihi malum facit.” Cum Wisagatcak earn stuprasset, mulier iterum cum eo coire voluit, sed sorores quare tantam ex novo ludo cepit delectationem nesciebant et ludum euodem disure concupiverunt. [He stripped the woman of her clothes and raped her. She exclaimed, “Wisagatcak, I have been killed.” Then the sisters pulled him away, “He is not doing me any harm.” When Wisagatcak had raped her, the woman wanted to have sex with him again, but the sisters did not know why she took such pleasure in this new game, and they desperately wanted to play the same game.] So she could not keep him to herself. Very soon Wisagatcak was very nearly dead, but they insisted upon his continuing the play. Finally, he escaped, but he was almost dead.

At last, Wisagatcak went to the north. On the other side of Winisk-sibi (Ground Hog or Woodchuck River) he met the north wind who was traveling in the same direction. To escape from the north wind he built a shelter of rocks which may still be seen there to this day. It is just the size of a man. After this happened, nobody knows what became of Wisagatcak.

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