War with the Swan people

A hunter’s wife is abducted by a man from the Swan people, who reside in a distant, cold land separated by a sky barrier that intermittently rises and falls. The hunter gathers a war party, constructs canoes, and pursues the abductor. They navigate through the sky’s opening and continue their journey into the Swan people’s territory.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Supernatural Beings: The Swan people are depicted as otherworldly entities with unique abilities, interacting with humans.

Love and Betrayal: The narrative centers on the husband’s love for his wife and the betrayal he feels due to her abduction.

Trials and Tribulations: The protagonist and his companions face numerous challenges, including building canoes, enduring harsh climates, and confronting the Swan people, to achieve their objective.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Once a man had a wife who had many brothers. He hunted caribou all the time, and his wife staid in camp and prepared the meat and skins. One day when carrying caribou back-fat, and while on his way home from hunting, he heard cries from down below, near his camp. He hurried there, and found that a strange man had taken his wife. She had held on to the willows, but he had dragged her along and put her in his canoe. He was just pushing off when the husband arrived at the water-edge. The husband told the man to let him see his wife; but the man would not do this, and kept her down in the bottom of the canoe. The husband asked the stranger many questions; and the latter answered freely, for he thought there was no possibility of his ever being followed.

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He learned that the stranger was a Swan man. He belonged to the Swan people, who often stole women from the Indians. They lived in a high cold country a long distance off. Between their country and the Indian country the sky intervened; but at intervals it would rise for a short time, and then fall again on the water. At these times people could pass through from one country to the other. The man stated that there was snow in his country already, and that the winter had set in. The husband asked him how he did on the way going home. He answered, “I anchor my canoe with a stone every night, and go on in the morning.” The husband then asked him to give him something that would satisfy him for the loss of his wife, and he gave him an arrow. Then the stranger departed, never expecting that people could possibly follow him.

The husband now gathered all his own friends, his wife’s brothers and all her friends, to make up a large war-party. They made many canoes, many snowshoes, many moccasins, and many arrows and spears. They started on the track of the Swan man over the lake. At night they lashed all their canoes together and anchored them. After many days they arrived at a place where there seemed to be a hole in the sky. The sky was rising and falling at short intervals at this place. They watched a chance when the sky rose above the water, and rushed through. The sky came down and hit the last man. They thought this bad luck: so they gave this man a canoe, and sent him back.

It was summer in their own country, but on the other side of the sky it was already winter. At last they saw smoke on the shore, and came to an old camp. The people had lately left this camp, excepting two old women and a girl. [Some informants say that the women were very old and blind, and therefore not able to travel with the people.] They had gone off on their early winter hunt in the interior. The war-party hid near the camp. One old woman said to the other, “Put a stick on the fire.” She got up and pulled a log along to put it on the fire. One of the war-party, concealed in the bushes near the fire, took hold of the opposite end of the stick. He pushed it and pulled it, causing the old woman (who held on) to go backwards and forwards. The other woman laughed, saying, “Why does she go back and forth in that way?” The woman holding the log made a sign to her to keep quiet, and not to laugh. Then she whispered, “Maybe there is some one here. You know there was a woman stolen by our people lately.”

The war-party now cached their canoes, put on their snowshoes, and followed the people’s tracks. They intended to kill the old women on their return. The Swan people were still travelling every day, the men hunting, and the women dragging the toboggans and making the camps. The captive woman had not slept with her new husband yet. She always lingered behind, dragging her toboggan; and when she cut brush for the camp, she always did so back on the trail. An old woman also followed behind, being unable to drag her toboggan as fast as the others.

The husband who had lost his wife was chief of the war-party. After a number of days they caught up with the Swan people, and the chief went ahead to reconnoitre. He saw his wife cutting brush, and he stopped. She came back along the trail, and saw him. She was glad, and about to rush towards him; but he said to her, “Don’t come near me, only speak! We are famished. Can you get food for us?” The old woman was not far away, and she had much meat in her toboggan. The captive woman went to her, and told her how her axe had broken, and that she wanted some sinew to tie the stone to the handle again. The old woman said, “Go to my toboggan and take out some sinew.” She went there, and took out meat and replaced it with brush. She then hauled the meat back to the war-party. Again she hauled back brush to camp, and told the old woman her axe had broken again. The old woman told her to take some more sinew, and she took meat and carried it to the war-party. The chief (her former husband) said to her, “Tonight put fresh meat on the men’s snowshoes and on their arrow-points (and spear-points?), so that it will freeze on, and they cannot use them. In the morning a strong wind will blow, and then we shall come. Keep your husband [some people say “two husbands”] awake by playing and fooling with him until he is tired. He will then sleep soundly.”

Her new husband was chief of the Swan people. When nearly daybreak, the woman built a fire, and one man started out to hunt. Then a strong cold north wind began to blow, and nothing could be seen outside the camp except the driving snow. The war-party crept up in the storm, and the woman ran out and joined them. They attacked and killed all the people. The only one who escaped was the man who had gone hunting.

When they returned to the camp near where they had cached their canoes, they found that the two old women and the girl had changed into mice. They set out on their return journey on the lake, and came to the place where sky and water met. They found that the sky had frozen to the water, and that they were barred by what seemed a wall of ice. All the shamans and the animals tried to make a passage through, but without result. The Lynx jumped at the ice wall, trying to make a hole with his nose, and drove it back into his face. This is why he has now such a short blunt nose. At last Weasel made a hole and passed through; the next animal, a little bigger, enlarged the hole and went through; and thus they enlarged the hole, a bigger animal passing through each time. At last the moose went through, and then they took the canoes through. The party then travelled back the way they had come, and reached home in safety.

Now the Mice women in Swan land travelled into the interior to find their people. The girl with the old women was sister to the man who had gone hunting and thus escaped death. They found his tracks and followed him; but he always kept ahead of them, and camped alone. They could not overtake him. The old women had a dog that could speak like a person. This dog always went forward to the hunter’s camp, and brought back meat for the women and the girl. Thus they continued journeying until they reached a large camp of Swan people who were their friends. The hunter would not camp with them, however, because his sister (the Mouse girl) was pregnant, and he was ashamed. He had never had connection with her, so he was much ashamed when people said he was the father of his sister’s child. He became so much ashamed that he committed suicide. (Here follows the child story, which I did not record.)

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The Kaska man who made whales

A Kaska man, married to a Tlingit woman, was challenged by her people to climb an icy island. After succeeding, he was abandoned but found refuge with the Seal people beneath the ice. He healed a wounded seal and, in gratitude, they sent him home. He then carved wooden whales, brought them to life, and commanded them to overturn the seal-hunters’ canoe, sparing only a boy.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Magic and Enchantment: The Kaska man’s carved wooden figures transform into living whales.

Revenge and Justice: The protagonist seeks retribution against those who left him stranded.

Divine Intervention: The Seal people, who reside beneath the ice and assist the man, represent supernatural entities.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

A Kaska man was married to a Tlingit woman, and lived near the ocean. His sister lived in the same village, and was married to the brother of his wife. Beyond, out in the ocean, was an island of ice just like a glacier, and no one had ever been able to climb it. The people were hunting seals near there in a large canoe. They said, “The Kaska are good climbers; they are an inland people. We should like to see our son-in-law try to climb up on the island.” The Kaska man said he would try. He put on his snowshoes and snowshoe-spurs, took his walking-stick with spiked end, and landed. He did not have much difficulty in climbing the ice, and soon reached the top. The Tlingit were jealous, and shouted loudly; then they turned the canoe and paddled away.

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A boy on board, who was his brother-in-law, was sorry, and paddled the opposite way to the other paddlers, for he did not want to desert him.

The Kaska man felt very sad when he saw that he was deserted, and finally lay down on the ice and fell asleep. It seemed as if he dreamed, but it was reality. Some one spoke to him, and asked him to come down underneath. He went down into a house which was the Seal people’s house, and saw many people there. They asked him how he had come to be asleep overhead, and he told them. One of the Seal men was sick. He had been speared by a Tlingit, and the harpoon head was in his flesh. The shamans of the Seal people did not know what was the matter with him nor how to relieve him. They had tried all kinds of treatment. Some of them proposed that they ask the stranger to try and cure him. The Kaska man knew at once what was the matter. He blew on the wound, and then pulled out the harpoon head without any difficulty. All the people were glad. They asked the Kaska if he wanted to go home, and he said, “Yes,” They put him in a distended seal-bladder, the neck of which they tied securely, and then set him afloat in the sea. They told him he must think only of his home. If he thought of anything else, he would immediately return. When he hit the sand and heard the noise of the waves on the shore, he would know he was at home, and might then open the bladder and get out. When he had reached half way to his destination, he thought of the place he had left, and immediately went back. The people warned him again, and sent him forward. Several times this happened. At last he managed to concentrate his thoughts long enough on his home, which he now reached very quickly. He sent back the bladder to the Seal people as soon as he got out of it. He told his wife of his experiences, and asked her not to tell any one.

Now he went in the bush near the seashore and carved a number of pieces of wood in the shape of whales, and threw them into the water end first. All of them were too light, and bounced up too quickly. He tried all kinds of wood. At last he made them of a hard heavy wood. When he threw them into the water, they went down a long way, and rose to the surface afar off. He transformed them into whales and sent them to catch seals. When they accomplished this, he called them back. He said to them, “Now, you must go to meet the large canoe with the seal-hunters, overturn it, and smash it; but you must spare the boy, and leave him a piece of canoe to float on.” The Whales did as directed, and all the seal-hunters were drowned excepting the boy. He called the Whales back, and said to them, “Now you shall be real whales, and go in the ocean as you will. You shall overturn canoes sometimes, and shall also eat seals. You shall be the largest and strongest animals of the ocean.” This is why the Tlingit say it was a Kaska man who created the whales.

Bladder-Head Boy; or, the monster that ate people

A woman encounters an atix’, a massive, elephant-like creature, while transporting beaver meat. Her husband dismisses her warning and is subsequently devoured by the beast. The woman escapes to a nearby camp, where the atix’ paralyzes the inhabitants with fear. A mistreated boy, known for wearing a moose-bladder on his head, reveals his shamanic powers, dons magic trousers, and kills the creature with enchanted arrows, earning gratitude and two wives.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Cultural Heroes: The boy emerges as a foundational figure who saves the community from the monstrous threat, embodying the role of a cultural hero in Kaska folklore.

Conflict with Nature: The community faces a struggle against the atix’, a formidable natural force that endangers their survival.

Trials and Tribulations: The boy confronts and overcomes significant challenges, including societal mistreatment and the formidable task of defeating the atix’, highlighting his resilience and bravery.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

A man with his wife and baby were travelling all the time, and netting beaver on the lakes and streams. They came to a big lake, which they crossed, and camped on the other side. One day the woman was dragging to camp a skin toboggan with beaver-meat, carrying her baby on her back. She noticed some large animal approaching, and, being afraid to turn around, looked back between her legs. She saw that the animal was an atix’ and became very much afraid.

Atix’ was a very large kind of animal which roamed the country a long time ago. It corresponded somewhat to white men’s pictures of elephants.

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It was of huge size, in build like an elephant, had tusks, and was hairy. These animals were seen not so very long ago, it is said, generally singly; but none have been seen now for several generations. Indians come across their bones occasionally. The narrator said that he and some others, a few years ago, came on a shoulder-blade which they at first thought was a peculiarly shaped rock, sticking out of the ground. This was on the top of a mountain near the Hyland River. The shoulder-blade was as wide as a table (about three feet), and was covered with about seven inches of moss.

She scattered all the meat in the snow and ran to camp. Her husband would not believe that she had seen this animal, and told her she was simply excusing herself for having given the meat to her sweetheart. She pulled up her clothes, and said, “You can see I have been with no man.” He laughed, and went off to set his beaver-nets. On his return, he went to bed, and was soon sound asleep and snoring. The woman cut a trail to escape through the willow-brush near camp. She then lay down on the opposite side of the fire from her husband, with her moccasins on and her baby in her arms, ready to run. During the night she heard the animal coming, and poked her husband with a stick to awaken him; but he slept on. She then ran away, and the animal came into camp and ate her husband. Afterwards the animal followed the woman’s tracks, making sounds like a person crying.

The woman reached a place on the lake where many people were camped, and warned them. The people made many holes close together in the ice of the lake, so that the animal, in approaching, would break through and drown. When it came to this place, the ice broke with its weight; but the animal walked along the bottom of the lake, broke the ice ahead of him, and came out to where the people were. The woman with the baby ran away. The other people were so scared that they could not run. They fell down quite helpless, and some of them were as if asleep.

In the camp was a boy who was ill treated by everybody. Even the old women stepped over him, and treated him as if he were a dog. He looked as though he had no hair, because he wore a moose-bladder over his head. Only his grandmother knew that he was like a shaman. He had magic trousers and magic arrows. Now, his grandmother nudged him, and said, “See what is coming!” He said to her, “Get my trousers and arrows.” He donned his trousers and seized his bow and arrows. He jumped, and shook his head. The bladder burst, and his hair fell down over him. He shot an arrow right through the animal. Then he jumped to the other side and shot an arrow back through it again. Thus he shot until he killed the animal. The people were very thankful, and gave him two girls to be his wives, but he accepted only one of them. They made him their chief. This is why since then people have had chiefs. The woman who ran away came back again.

The giants and the boys

Two boys were captured by a giant who intended to fatten and eat them. His wife, preferring their help with chores, delayed their fate by feeding him beaver meat instead. Eventually, she killed one boy, but the other escaped. The giant pursued him to a village where the residents cleverly trapped and killed the giant, ensuring the boy’s safety.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The story features a giant who captures two boys, representing an encounter with a mythical being.

Cunning and Deception: The surviving boy uses clever tactics to escape the giant and ultimately contributes to his demise.

Revenge and Justice: The community aids the boy in exacting justice by killing the giant who terrorized and consumed humans.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Two boys were stolen by a giant, who gave them to his wife to fatten for him. He hunted beaver all the time, and killed plenty; but he was very fond of human flesh, and preferred it. He always told his wife to cook something nice for him, meaning the boys; but she always cooked beaver-meat, as she liked to keep the boys to help her fetch water and do other things. At last she thought her husband would some time get angry if she did not take his suggestions: so one morning early, after her husband had gone hunting, she woke up one of the boys and told him to take the buckets and go for water. She wanted him to be absent, so that he would not know that she had killed his brother.

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As soon as he left, she pulled off his brother’s penis, and then killed him. The lad heard his brother’s cries, and knew what had happened. He kicked the buckets to pieces, and then went back to the house, where he called, “Give me the arrows! I see a grouse on the water trail!” She gave him the arrows. He broke them to pieces, and then ran away. As he did not return, the giantess went to see what was keeping him so long. When she saw the buckets and arrows broken, she called to her husband, who came back and started with a spear in pursuit of the boy. The boy hid in a crevasse of a glacier, where ice was piled up. The giant was too large to enter, and he could not break the ice: so he poked in the hole with his spear, thinking he could thus kill the boy. The boy rolled up his blanket and put it to one side. The giant thought this was the boy, and kept stabbing it. The boy hit his own nose and made it bleed, and rubbed the blood on the spear-point. The giant thought he had killed the boy, so he left his spear there and went home. He told his wife, “You killed one for me yesterday, and I have killed one for you today.” She had already cooked the boy’s privates and his body, and now the couple ate all except the bones.

The giant told his wife, “We will shift camp to where the other boy is, and eat him next. When they reached the ice, he told his wife to crawl in and bring out the body. She crawled in, and found nothing but blood-stains. The giant said, “His body is certainly there. Where are your eyes?” His wife then pointed out the broken spear, and they knew that the boy had escaped. After feeling around in the hole, the giant started in pursuit.

The boy reached a place at a large lake where there was a large camp of people fishing. They made ready all their weapons, and sharpened many sticks. When the giant arrived, he asked, “Has my grandson come here?” and the people answered, “Yes, he is here.” The giant said, “His grandmother weeps for him, and I have come to get him.” He asked the boy if he would come back; and the boy answered, “Yes.” The people invited the giant in, asked him to be seated, and gave him fish to eat. After eating, the giant asked the boy to louse his head. The boy loused his head. The people stuck the sharpened sticks into the ground all round, and the boy tied the ends of the giant’s hair to the sticks. While the boy was lousing his head, the giant thought of eating the boy, and pierced his leg with a bone. The boy jumped away, and the giant reached out to catch him. As he did so, he found that his hair was tied to pegs all round, and that he could not arise. The people then attacked and killed him.

The giant had told his wife to follow him. The people made a new camp on the way she was to come, and prepared to receive her. They cooked the fat from the stomach of her husband, and had it ready for her. When she arrived, she was carrying a bundle, and pretended that it was a baby. She herself cried, imitating a baby. Then she would say, “The baby is not crying: I am doing this to fool the Indians.” She asked where her husband was, and the people told her he was at the camp beyond, but would soon be back. She answered, “My husband is not in the habit of going to other camps.” The people had already told her the camp she was now in was made by her husband especially for her. They assured her that her husband would be back soon, and said to her, “Sit down, and we will give you something good to eat.” She sat down on the pretended baby. The people asked to see her baby; but she said, “It cries when anybody looks at it.” The people gave her husband’s fat to eat. She said it had a bad taste, and they told her it was perhaps a little old. She began to eat again. Some of the people went behind her, and tied the ends of her hair to the neighboring willow-bushes while the others spoke to her and entertained her. When all was ready, they began to laugh at her, and said to her, “That was your husband’s fat you ate.” She got angry and opened the sack she carried, in which were stones for throwing at the people. The people attacked and killed her. When they opened the bundle to look at the baby, they found only the bones of the boy she and her husband had eaten.

The brothers, Big-Man and the giants

Two brothers lived together; the younger hunted while the elder managed the camp. The elder grew resentful and denied his brother food. One day, the younger brother encountered a giant while cooking a porcupine. The elder brother pretended to assist the giant in capturing his sibling but instead killed the giant, releasing mosquitoes into the world. Afterward, the brothers reconciled and continued their journey.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Trickster: The elder brother uses cunning to deceive and ultimately kill the giant by pretending to assist him, only to strike him fatally.

Origin of Things: The narrative explains the origin of mosquitoes, suggesting they emerged from the giant’s brain when the brothers opened his head.

Good vs. Evil: The brothers confront malevolent giants, representing a classic struggle between opposing forces.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Two brothers lived together. [Some informants say that the two brothers left their father and went hunting. They were lost, and led a nomadic life.] The younger one hunted all the time; while the elder staid in camp, cooked, and kept house. The latter began to dislike his younger brother, and would not give him anything to eat when he came home. One day the younger brother became very hungry, and killed a porcupine. He made a fire, and cooked it on a hook suspended from a pole near the fire. When it was about half done, a giant came, and the lad ran up a tree. The giant smelled of the porcupine, and threw it away. Finding the lad’s snowshoes, he ate out the fillings. Then he began to chop down the tree in which the lad was.

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The lad cried for his elder brother, who went there at once. When the giant saw him approaching, he was glad, for he saw in him a meal. The elder brother offered to help the giant, and took the axe. He said, “That boy is very bad. He always does mean things. I will help you chop the tree, so that we may get him and eat him.” He swung the axe with great vigor; and the giant, standing a little too close by, received a cut on the brow from the back of the axe. The man said to him, “Stand farther away, I might hit you hard.” He chopped hard and wildly, swinging his axe around. He watched his chance, gave the axe a great swing, and, instead of hitting the tree, cut off the giant’s head. The brothers opened it, and many mosquitoes flew out, which were his brains. This is the reason why giants are so foolish and easily fooled, and also the reason that mosquitoes are in the world now. Had they not opened the giant’s head and let the mosquitoes out, there would be none of these insects now. The elder brother cooked the porcupine, and gave half to his brother. After this, they shared equally when eating. Now they travelled on, and always camped in new country.

They came to a region where there were no porcupines. They could not get anything to eat, and were famished. The elder brother became very hungry and very weak. At last he could travel no farther, so he camped in the snow and made a big fire. He thought he would kill his younger brother and eat him. The latter lay on the opposite side of the fire, and watched him. When the fire had been burning some time, the elder brother heard a sizzling noise on his brother’s side of the fire, and went to investigate. He found that they had lighted their fire over the frozen carcass of a buffalo that had been killed fighting, and the side of the animal was cooking. They cut it up and ate some of it, and the elder brother became stronger. The younger brother now hunted and killed some fat buffalo, the ribs and inside fat of which he carried home and fed to his brother, who ate so much that he nearly burst. The younger one said to him, “Eat some more!” but he answered, “I cannot.” The younger one said, “Eat more, be sure you have your fill. You thought of eating me.” The elder answered, “My stomach was empty, that is why I thought that way; now I am full.” They became good friends, and went on to a new locality.

One day, when travelling, they came to a porcupine’s den in the rocks. They saw Big-Man approaching, and, never having seen him before, they were afraid, and went into the porcupine-hole. Big-Man asked them to come out, saying that he would not harm them. The elder brother came out, but the younger one was afraid and staid in. Big-Man was angry because the younger brother would not trust him: so he made the rocks grow together, and thus prevented him from getting out. Big-Man told the elder lad that he wanted him to help him get back his wife, whom a giant had stolen. Big-Man had two large dogs which he used as pack-animals. They were the grizzly and the black bears. Now the giant travelled, carrying the lad under one arm; and very soon they reached a different country, where everything was of enormous size. A very large kind of beaver formerly inhabiting the world was to be found here. The beavers had hairy tails. The giant and the lad reached a large lake in which there were many beavers. Big-Man caught them in nets. He ate them, and threw away the tails. The lad hid himself, and cooked and ate one of the tails. Big-Man asked him what he was eating, and the lad told him. Big-Man said, “Put some in my mouth, I want to taste it.” When he had tasted the beaver-tails, he said, “That is the best food I ever ate,” and he told the boy to gather all the tails he had thrown away. Big-Man sent the lad out to scout. He said, “Look about and see if you can see a big lake with what looks like an island in the middle.” Big-Man was fond of the lad, and always called him “Grandson.” The lad went up on the top of a high hill and looked around. He saw what looked like an island in the middle of a lake, and returned to tell Big-Man. The latter said, “That is the giant fishing.”

Now they prepared to fight the giant. Big-Man made bow and arrows and spear, and the boy made a beaver-tooth axe. He intended to take a large beaver-tooth for the axe, but found he could not lift it, so he took a young beaver’s tooth. Big-Man told the boy to go near the lake and to bark like a dog. He said, “The giant will become frightened and run home. You follow him up, barking, and I will lay in wait for him on the trail between the lake and his house.” The fish the giant was catching in the lake were all covered with hair. When he heard what he thought was a dog barking, he put his pack of fish on his back and ran for home. When he came close enough, Big-Man fired an arrow at him; but the giant jumped aside, and the arrow missed him. Then Big-Man attacked him with the spear, but the giant evaded the thrusts. Now they seized each other and wrestled. After a long time Big-Man became weak, and called on the boy for help. The latter ran up, and, striking the giant with his beaver-tooth club, hamstrung him, and he fell down. They then killed him.

Now they went to the giant’s house. When the giantess saw them, she called out, “Why did you kill my husband?” She threw huge rocks at Big-Man, but the latter jumped aside and avoided them. The giantess stood up and put her breasts on Big-Man’s shoulders. They were so heavy, he nearly fell down. They wrestled; and the boy cut the sinews of her legs as he had her husband’s, and she fell down. They killed her and her babies and all her children. The babies were of the size of tall men. Big-Man took back his wife, and thanked the boy for his help.

The boy wanted to return to his own country and see his parents. He had been away a long time. He knew his country was far off, and he did not know where it was nor how to reach it. Big-Man knew his thoughts. He said, “I will give you one of my dogs to ride. When you get out of food, kill him and eat him; but be sure to preserve one arm-bone, and keep it close to your head when you sleep. It will be bare when you fall asleep; but when you awake, it will be clothed with meat. Thus you will always have food to eat. I shall also give you a walking-stick. When you retire, always stick it up near the head of your bed. In the morning you will find the stick pointing a certain way, which will be the direction you must follow for that day. Thus you will know your road. Some morning when you find that the stick has fallen down and is lying flat, and your bone is devoid of meat, you will know you are near your destination, and will reach home that day.” Big-Man also told him that he would not see him again, but that he would know by signs when he died. He said, “When I die or am killed, you will see the sky all red: that is my blood. You will also see rain fall: that is my tears.” Big-Man gave him his grizzly-bear dog to ride. The lad had only gone a little way when the bear began to growl and wanted to fight him. He called back to Big-Man, who changed the dogs, and gave him the black bear to ride.

He went on until he came to a country where there was no game, and became hungry. Then he killed the bear and ate it, but kept the bone, as advised. One morning when he awoke, he saw that the stick had fallen down and that there was no meat on the bone. He was glad, and he reached his parents that day. That is why black bears are much better eating than grizzly bears, and also why grizzly bears are mean sometimes and want to fight people. That is also probably why people say that bears were originally dogs.

Not long afterwards the lad saw the sky all red, and rain fell. He then knew that his friend Big-Man was dead. That is why people say now that a red sky is blood (or Big-Man’s blood); and when rain falls, it is tears (Big-Man’s tears).

Big-Man (Dene Tco)

Big-Man was a colossal, hairless figure whose head touched the sky when he stood. Long ago, the sky was so close to the earth that Big-Man had to crawl, leading to constant cold weather. Frustrated, he pushed the sky upward until he could stand fully, resulting in a higher sky and milder climate. Some believe he ascended to the sky-world, and that rain is his tears.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Creation: The tale explains how the current state of the world, particularly the distance between the sky and earth and the resulting climate, came to be.

Cultural Heroes: Big-Man is a foundational figure who shapes the environment for the benefit of humanity, embodying the traits of a cultural hero.

Supernatural Beings: Big-Man himself is a supernatural entity of immense size and strength, interacting with the world in extraordinary ways.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Big-Man was in the world very long ago. He was of huge stature, and had no hair on his head. When he stood erect, his head touched the sky. Once a long time ago the sky was very close to the earth, and therefore it was always cold weather. At this time there was no room for Big-Man. When he travelled, he had to crawl, for the sky was very low. After a time he became angry at this inconvenience, and began to push the sky up. He kept on pushing it up, until at last he was able to stand at full height. The sky was now high, and far from the earth, and this made the weather on earth much milder. Since then it has been as it is now. Big-Man was a good man, and never harmed Indians. Some think he went to the sky-world, or somewhere up above, and that the rain is his tears.

► Continue reading…

Raven, or Big-Crow

The Kaska people have a tale featuring Raven as a transformer and trickster. This narrative includes episodes where Raven defecates and consults his excrement for guidance, and another where he sends his penis across a river, which then enters a girl. Muskrat advises, “Cut it with grass!” These elements suggest possible influences from neighboring cultures, such as the Tahltan and Cree.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Trickster: Raven embodies the archetype of a cunning figure using wit to outsmart others.

Transformation: As a transformer, Raven undergoes or instigates physical, emotional, or spiritual changes.

Supernatural Beings: Interactions with spirits, gods, or monsters are evident in Raven’s tales.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

The Kaska have a story of Raven, who acts as a transformer and trickster. The story is not well known to most of them, and may have been borrowed, at least in part, from the Tahltan. My informant would not attempt the telling of this story, as he said he did not know it well enough, and none of the other Kaska who happened to be at hand knew it any better. Among the incidents are those of Raven defecating and asking his excrements for information, and of Raven sending his penis across a river, where it enters a girl. Muskrat called out, “Cut it with grass!” Adsit thinks this incident may have been borrowed from the Cree, who have a story of the culture-hero getting Muskrat to swim across a river with his penis, which then enters a girl. The latter gets sick, and Muskrat calls out to cut it with grass.

► Continue reading…

Origin of fire, and origin of death

In this Kaska tale, only Bear possesses fire, kept in a fire-stone tied to his belt. A small bird, feigning cold, picks at Bear’s lice and secretly severs the string holding the stone. The bird steals the stone, passing it through a relay of animals to Fox, who distributes fire to all tribes. Later, Fox attempts to ensure human resurrection by throwing a stick into water, but Bear’s interference leads to permanent death.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Origin of Things: The narrative explains the origin of fire among tribes and the establishment of death as a permanent state for humans.

Trickster: The little bird employs cunning to steal the fire-stone from Bear, showcasing the trickster archetype.

Transformation: The tale illustrates a significant change in the human condition, transitioning from a state of potential immortality to the acceptance of permanent death.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Long ago the people had no fire. Of all the people, only Bear had fire. He had a fire-stone, with which he could make fire at any time. He jealously guarded this stone, and always kept it tied to his belt. One day he was lying down by the fire in his lodge when a little bird came in and approached the fire. Bear said, “What do you want?” and the bird answered, “I am nearly frozen, and have come in to warm myself.” Bear told it to come and pick his lice. The little bird assented, and began to hop all over Bear, picking his lice. While doing this, it also picked the string which fastened the fire-stone to Bear’s belt. When the string was completely picked asunder, the bird suddenly snatched the stone and flew off with it.

► Continue reading…

Now the animals had already arranged for the stealing of the fire, and waited in line, one behind another. Bear chased the bird, and caught up with it just as it reached the first animal of the line. As it threw the fire to him, he ran with it; and, as Bear in turn overtook him, he passed it on to the next; and so on. At last the fire was passed to Fox, who ran up a high mountain with it. Bear was so exhausted that he could not follow Fox, and turned back. Fox broke up the fire-stone on the top of the mountain, and threw the fragments a piece to each tribe. Thus the many tribes all over the earth obtained fire; and this is why there is fire in the rocks and woods everywhere now.

Fox then descended to a creek and threw a stick down into the water, saying, “When people die, they shall come back to life again, even as this stick rises again to the surface of the water; also old people, when they die, shall come back young again.” Just then Bear came there, and, feeling angry because the people had stolen his fire, he threw a big rock into the water on top of the stick, so that the stick never came up again. Bear then said, “Henceforth, when people die, they shall be dead always, and shall never come back again.” If Fox’s stick had come up again after being hit by the rock, Fox would have won, and people would have had their lives renewed each time they died. There thus would have been no real death. Bear now, having no fire, said, “I will make a hole in the earth, so I shall be able to keep warm in the winter-time. I shall make my hole right on the trail.” Fox said, “If you make your house right on the trail, people will always find you. Make it on the mountains.” This is why bears now make dens in the mountains.

The Great Flood

A catastrophic flood engulfed the earth, forcing survivors onto rafts and canoes. Amidst darkness and fierce winds, they were scattered to distant lands. As the waters receded, these groups settled wherever they landed, leading to the formation of diverse populations. Over time, isolated communities developed distinct languages and cultures, explaining the world’s multitude of tribes and tongues.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Creation: The story explains the origin of the world’s current state, particularly the diversity of human cultures and languages, following a primordial event.

Origin of Things: It provides an explanation for natural phenomena, specifically the existence of multiple languages and the geographical distribution of peoples.

Cosmic Order and Chaos: The narrative depicts a transition from a unified, orderly world to one characterized by chaos (the flood) and subsequently a new order with separated cultures.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Once there came a great flood which covered the earth. Most of the people made rafts, and some escaped in canoes. Great darkness came on, and high winds which drove the vessels hither and thither. The people became separated. Some were driven far away. When the flood subsided, people landed wherever they found the nearest land. When the earth became dry, they lived in the places near where they had landed. People were now widely scattered over the world. They did not know where other people lived, and probably thought themselves the only survivors. Long afterwards, when in their wanderings they met people from another place, they spoke different languages, and could not understand one another.

► Continue reading…

This is why there are now many different centres of population, many tribes, and many languages. Before the flood, there was but one centre; for all the people lived together in one country, and spoke one language.

Origin of the Earth

In Kaska mythology, before the earth existed, the world was a vast expanse of water. Animals and birds attempted to retrieve earth from the depths, but only Diver succeeded after six days, bringing back mud under his toenails. From this, they formed the earth, which gradually solidified and sprouted vegetation. The narrator noted that the original tale was more detailed, including causes for the flood and its duration.

Source:
Kaska Tales
by James A. Teit
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.30, No.118, pp. 427-473
October-December, 1917

► Themes of the story

Creation: The story explains how the earth was formed from a primordial watery state.

Origin of Things: It provides an explanation for the existence of land and the emergence of vegetation.

Mythical Creatures: The story features animals and birds undertaking significant actions, often attributed with symbolic or mythical significance in indigenous narratives.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Sub-Arctic Region
  - Kaska Lore

Learn more about the Kaska people

Once there was no earth. Water was where the earth is now. The world was as a great lake.

The animals and birds wanted to have an earth, and proposed to dive for it. The earth was very deep under the water. Beaver and Muskrat, and all the animals and birds, dived, but none of them reached the bottom. None of them staid under water longer than half a day.

At last Diver (a bird) went down. After six days he came up quite exhausted and speechless. His friends examined his toe-nails, and found mud or earth under them.

► Continue reading…

From this they formed on top of the water a new earth, which grew until it formed the present earth.

At first it was merely mud and very soft. Later it became firm, and trees and vegetation began to grow on it. Now the earth is old and dry. Perhaps it is drying up.

The narrator stated that this was originally a long story. He had forgotten the cause ascribed for the Flood, its duration, and many details that he had heard.