The biter bit

An old man murdered his daughter’s first two husbands by luring them to a hilltop trap that would break their backs. Her third spouse, however, proved more cunning: after a fruitful bear hunt he presented the old man with a massive fat-filled birchbark basket and agreed to ascend the hill together. In wrestling for strength, the son-in-law broke the old man’s back, and the daughter declared it just retribution.

Source: 
Folk-Lore of the Cree Indians 
by Fred Swindlehurst 
The American Folklore Society
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.18, No.69, pp. 139-143
April-June, 1905


► Themes of the story


Revenge and Justice: The son-in-law’s victory serves as retribution for the old man’s earlier killings.

Conflict with Authority: The daughter repeatedly defies her father’s tyranny by marrying against his will.

Family Dynamics: A dysfunctional father–daughter relationship drives the cycle of violence and retribution.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Cree people


There was once an old man who had an only daughter to look after him. One day the daughter was married to a young Indian, and this so angered the old man that he put the husband to death. The daughter married again, and again the old man made away with her husband. The manner in which he killed them was by coaxing them to the top of a hill, where he had a trap placed to break their backs.

At last the daughter married a man who happened to be a little more cunning than the rest. He ran away with the daughter and went off to hunt bear. That winter he was very successful and killed many bears.

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He made a large roggan or birchbark basket in which he put the bear’s fat. The roggan was so heavy that it took four men to carry it.

In the spring the couple returned to the old man’s wigwam, and the son-in-law made him a present of the roggan. The old man was so strong that he lifted the roggan easily. The old man then coaxed the son-in-law to go to the top of the hill, intending to serve him as he had done the others, but the young man proved too strong and cunning for the old fellow, and in wrestling he broke the old man’s back. During the struggle the old man cried out to his daughter that her husband was killing him, but she had no sympathy for him, and said that it served him right.


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The killing of the trader at Fort St. John

A young man disobeys a white trader’s orders and returns to his community. Angered, the trader poisons him. In retaliation, the young man’s kin kill the trader and ambush his returning crew, eliminating them all. They seize the store’s goods, living off them for years. Once depleted, they revert to traditional hunting, avoiding white settlements out of fear, and relying solely on bows and arrows.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Revenge and Justice: The community seeks retribution for the young man’s death by killing the trader and his associates.

Conflict with Authority: The young man’s initial disobedience and the subsequent violent response from his community represent a challenge to the trader’s authority.

Community and Isolation: Following the conflict, the community isolates themselves, avoiding contact with white men out of fear.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


A white man gave the young man orders but notwithstanding, he went back to his people. The trader was angry and killed the boy with medicine (poison). His friends knew this had happened and went to the post [this refers to the trading post at Fort St. John, called by the Beaver gtitkwe, “Spruce House.” The first post stood on the east side of North Pine River, near where it enters the Peace] and killed the trader. The young men attached to the post had gone for wood in a boat. The Beaver were lying in wait for them. When they returned and the white men stepped ashore they shot them and killed them all. The steersman jumped into the water. He came to the surface far out in the stream. They shot at him and killed him.

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They took the goods from the store and lived many years on them. When they were gone they lived with “their bows and arrows. They remained in the woods and did not visit a white man’s house because they were afraid. From that time they increased, living with their bows and arrows, not having gunpowder.

Second version. It seems that the white traders first had a trading post at Pine River. The Beaver Indians killed the man in charge of the post, and all his servants. After that these Indians kept away from white people, and were afraid to go near them thinking they would be killed. Some time after they built another post which has remained until the present time.


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A Dog-Rib kills some men

In a time before European contact, a Dog-Rib individual prepared a camp for an approaching group and warned some Beaver people about nearby fox holes, intending to harm them. A conflict ensued, resulting in many Beaver deaths, though some escaped. This violence stemmed from ongoing hostilities with the Cree. Eventually, the Beaver and Cree reconciled, ending their conflicts.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Conflict with Authority: The Dog-Rib individual’s deceitful actions can be seen as a challenge to the established norms or authority within the community.

Cunning and Deception: The Dog-Rib uses deceit by falsely informing the Beaver about fox holes, leading them into a trap.

Revenge and Justice: The subsequent attack by the Beaver can be interpreted as an act of retribution for the Dog-Rib’s deceit.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


One time a Dog-Rib who was making a camp ready for those who were coming said to some Beaver, “There are fox holes where you are.” He said it because he thought he might kill them. The Beaver went in and began to shoot. They killed many of the Beaver but a few got away. They killed them as they ran. It was his younger brother who did this.

It was on account of the Cree. They were very miserable on account of them. Before white people came they were hunting each other. The Cree were trying to kill the Beaver. Now they have made friends with each other and nothing happens now.

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Putting the enemy to sleep by magic

two brothers encounter a large group of strangers. The elder brother hesitates to attack due to their numbers, but the younger insists. They approach the group under the guise of being scolded members of a larger party and invite four young men to accompany them. After nightfall, one brother uses supernatural powers to induce sleep, allowing them to kill the men with knives.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Cunning and Deception: The brothers employ deceit by pretending to be harmless and gaining the trust of their enemies before attacking.

Magic and Enchantment: They use supernatural powers to induce sleep in their victims, showcasing the use of magic in achieving their goals.

Conflict with Authority: By deceiving and killing members of another group, the brothers challenge and disrupt the established order, leading to conflict.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


Two men started out to kill people. As they were going along the road they saw a large number of people sitting down. The two men were not themselves seen. “Well, let us get away from them,” said the elder brother, and they turned back. “Let us shoot them anyway,” said the younger brother. “There are too many people, we will get caught,” the older one insisted. “Let us shoot them anyway,” the younger brother repeated and pointed his gun at them again. “We will get caught, there are too many of them,” the older said again. “Well, turn back, if you are afraid,” the younger one said, and they turned back. “I will fool them,” one of them said. They put their weapons on the ground and went where the people from a distant country were sitting.

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When these people saw them they asked the young men what they were looking for. They replied that they were not out on a foolish errand but belonged to a large party who were traveling over by the river. They had gone off by themselves because they had been scolded. They proposed that four young men should return with them.

With these four men they came down to a very large river. After sunset they went to bed. One of the two young men tried to make them sleep by use of supernatural power. “One of them must be a powerful medicineman,” he said to himself. After considerable time he caused them all to sleep. “Now,” he said to his companion, and they killed them all with their knives.


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The escape of the brothers from the beaver lodge

Two brothers enter a beaver lodge to hunt. Unaware that a Cree war party has attacked their camp, they become trapped when the Cree set the lodge on fire. Facing suffocation, the older brother leads an escape through an underwater passage, pulling his younger sibling to safety. Despite freezing conditions, they survive, highlighting their resilience during times of conflict.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Conflict with Authority: The brothers face aggression from the Cree, who represent an oppressive force threatening their lives.

Trials and Tribulations: The brothers endure significant challenges, including escaping the burning lodge and surviving the freezing conditions.

Cunning and Deception: The brothers use their knowledge of the beaver lodge’s structure to outwit the Cree and escape through the underwater passage.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


There were two young brothers who went in under a beaver lodge. They were waiting there listening to detect the beaver. While they were there, a party of Cree came and killed the people at the camp. The young men did not find it out, but the Cree saw them and came to the hole which they had cut in the beaver lodge and brought a quantity of dry wood which they pushed in and set on fire. The men inside were in great distress, and could hardly breathe on account of smoke. They were about to die and there was nothing they could do to help themselves. They plunged into the water, for they knew that down stream there was a hole which had been cut through the ice. The older brother succeeded in reaching the hole and came out.

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I suppose he did not do it without some reason. [Interpolated by the narrator to explain that the man had supernatural help in escaping.] His younger brother was behind him, for the older brother had said, “Keep right behind me.” He felt for his brother and caught him by the foot just as he was passing the opening. They both got out safely and went away and hid. The clothes they had on, being wet, froze. They were nearly frozen to death, but escaped.

There were no white people here at that time. They had a hard time because of the Cree who were always killing them. This happened when they had breechcloths of skin.


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A man scares off the Cree with a gun

An elderly man, sensing impending danger, warned his people to stay vigilant. The next morning, the Cree attacked. Positioned at the end of the row of tipis, the old man used a gun he had found earlier, with only four bullets. He shot and killed the lead attacker, causing the others to retreat, believing he was well-armed. This act of bravery protected his community.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Cunning and Deception: The old man devises a clever plan to use his limited resources effectively, deceiving the Cree into believing he poses a greater threat.

Conflict with Authority: The story involves a confrontation between the man’s community and the attacking Cree, representing a struggle against an opposing force.

Guardian Figures: The elderly man acts as a protector for his people, taking decisive action to safeguard them from harm.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


They were living there when one of them felt there was something wrong. He asked the people to keep good watch. The next morning the Cree attacked them. This old man had one gun and four bullets. His tipi was the last one in the row. When the Cree were coming there he fired the gun. He had planned what he would do. He killed the Cree who was running ahead and the others ran back. The Cree thought he had a gun and were afraid. That was a tough old man. They say he wintered on his flesh.

The old man had found the gun with four bullets lying beside it at a place where some people had been killed. He had kept it without firing it and now he killed a man with it. Then they say the old man had the use of it.

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A Cree, caught alone, is killed by the Beaver

Four young men, while checking their caribou snares, discover tracks of a lone traveler wearing round snowshoes, identifying him as a Cree. They decide to pursue and confront him. Upon catching him, they interrogate the man, who admits to killing “bad people,” implying their friends. Angered, they fatally stab him and dispose of his body in the water.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Revenge and Justice: The young men seek retribution against the Cree traveler, believing he has harmed their people.

Conflict with Authority: The act of taking justice into their own hands reflects a challenge to established norms or authority.

Tragic Flaw: The traveler’s admission and perceived arrogance lead to his demise, highlighting a personal weakness.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


Some young men were out in the caribou country camping and snaring game. They visited their snares frequently. Four young men were out in the morning to look after the snares. When they were coming back they saw one man had passed along wearing round snowshoes. “This must be a Cree and we will kill him,” they said. They hurried after him. He was going toward their camp. He came out on a lake and was walking along ahead. The young men ran after him and caught hold of him. “Tell us what you are going after. Did you ever kill people?” they asked him, “Yes, I have killed people but they weren’t like people. They were bad people. Those are the only ones I have killed,” he replied. He meant the friends of these young men. They stabbed him through the body and put the body in the water. Those young men killed him.

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A man and his wife are saved by lightning

A young married man is coerced by strangers into traveling to their distant land, where he faces starvation. They plan to kill him and take his wife, but he gives her a small piece of wood, instructing her to hold onto it. Lightning strikes, killing the strangers but sparing the wife. The couple endures a challenging journey home, surviving on beaver and bear meat.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Conflict with Authority: The man is coerced by an unfamiliar group, highlighting a struggle against oppressive forces.

Divine Intervention: The lightning strike that eliminates the antagonistic group can be seen as an act of divine intervention, saving the protagonists.

Trials and Tribulations: The couple endures significant hardships, including abduction, starvation, and a perilous journey back home.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


Some people came by who were not known. They took a fancy to a young married man and invited him to accompany them. He refused emphatically but when they insisted he went away with them. They were people who lived a long way off and he went with them a great distance to their country.

When they got there the young man began to starve. There was nothing he could do. He became weak. There was no meat and they gave him nothing to eat. He got so weak he walked with difficulty. “Well, never mind,” they said, “he will die. We will cross the large lake. The wind is very strong and cold against a man’s face. Let the cold kill him.”

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“We will take his wife,” they were saying to themselves. “Do not stay here,” they told her, “Go away. Do not wait for him. If you wait for him, you too will die.” They gave the man a piece of wood about four inches long. He did not take it but gave it to his wife. “If something happens suddenly do not let go of it,” he said to her. The woman moved her tipi.

The people could still be seen on the lake when the lightning struck among them. Not a flake of snow was left. There were many of the people and of them not one dark spot was left. The lightning had killed them all. There was just one dark speck out on the ice. The young man hurried out to see what it was. It was his wife and she was breathing a little. He took her back to his camp. There seemed to be no hope of their living, for their country was far away. “Although things are as they are, we will start back and go as far as we can before we die,” he said. They started back with nothing but their bare hands. With nothing to live on they were helpless. They were beginning to die of starvation when they suddenly came to an old beaver house. “I will set a net in the water for beaver,” he said to himself. “Make a fire and wait some place nearby for me,” he told his wife. He caught two beaver. They started back and traveled far with this food they had secured. When the beaver meat was gone and they were starving again they came where a large bear was lying. With that for food they came back until they reached their own land where there were small birds which served for food until they got back home. It was hard for them but they lived through it. Those people were like human beings but their only food was the flesh of foxes. [The informant said a tribe known as “Fox-eaters” used to live toward the south. The distance is indicated by the amount of food consumed by them, which the informant thought ought to have been sufficient for a very long journey.] The others were not accustomed to foxes and the flesh was tough for them.


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A young man tries to escape the responsibility of parenthood

In a time of scarcity, a young man persuades his father to camp separately from their group. Despite initial doubts, the young man successfully hunts two moose, providing for his family. Later, he rejoins the main group and faces criticism over a woman, leading him to return to his father’s camp. Unbeknownst to him, he has fathered a child, whom his mother eagerly accepts, hoping the child will become a hunting partner for her son.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Family Dynamics: The narrative centers on the relationships within a family, highlighting the young man’s attempt to escape his role as a parent and his parents’ willingness to assume responsibility for their grandchild.

Conflict with Authority: The young man’s decision to abandon his parental duties can be seen as a challenge to societal and familial expectations regarding responsibility and duty.

Community and Isolation: The young man’s actions lead to a form of isolation as he distances himself from his familial and societal roles, contrasting with the communal approach of his parents.

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


The people were very hungry. It seemed as if they would not live. They had made a cache and were going to that. When they were not yet in sight of it, the son of an old man suggested they camp about alone. “We cannot do that,” his father said, “we shall die.” The young man insisted that they camp by themselves. “Are you able to keep the fire pushed together if we do as you say? ‘ the father asked his son. “Yes, I will keep the fire pushed together,” the son promised. “Well, start off in the direction you want to go,” the father said. The young man started off and left a big pile of wood as a sign of the place where they were to camp. “Why do not you look after things? You said you would keep the fire pushed together. What is the matter?” his father said.

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“You said you would push the fire together. You do not act like a man. My children would be fed at the cache and now, because you talked that way, I fear they will die,” the old man said. The young man took the snares and set two for moose. Before long the snares made a noise and two moose had been caught. The old man moved the camp to them. “Father, I am going ahead where the other people are,” the young man said. “Do not go,” his father said, but the boy insisted he would go there.

He started off and came where the other people were. They scolded him because of a woman. Soon after that he went back to his father’s camp. The old man was on ahead. A woman had given birth to a child of which he was the father. “My grandchild,” the woman said, “I wonder whose it is?” “I guess it is that young man’s child,” someone said. The old man’s wife asked if it was a boy. “Yes, it is a boy,” they told her. “Go after him quickly,” the old woman said. “I will raise it. I have one child and this one will be his partner and they will hunt together.”


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A stolen wife is recovered from beyond the sea

A man and his wife camped by a vast lake. While he was hunting, someone abducted her, leaving a trail of disturbed vegetation. Following the signs, the husband reached the lake’s edge and saw his wife being taken across by canoe. Utilizing beaver teeth, he conjured a canoe, enlisted his brothers-in-law, and pursued them. Guided by feathers his wife dropped, they located the abductor’s camp, confronted him, and successfully rescued her.

Source: 
The Beaver Indians
by Pliny Earle Goddard
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 4
New York, 1912


► Themes of the story


Quest: The husband’s journey to retrieve his abducted wife represents a classic quest, involving a challenging journey to achieve a significant goal.

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

Conflict with Authority: The confrontation with “Rabbit-tail,” who appears to be a figure of authority or power in the context of the story, highlights a struggle against an oppressive force

► From the same Region or People

Learn more about the Dane-zaa people


Obtained in English from Ike through John Bourassa

A man left a large camp in which he had many brothers and camped alone with his wife. As they moved about they came to a large lake that one could not see across and camped by it. One day while he was away, hunting, someone stole his wife. He could see where she had been taken along, for as she resisted being pulled along she pulled out herbs and tore off brush which she dropped by the way. The husband followed until he came to a place where he could see across the sea. When the man who had captured the women came there with her she had asked him to shoot some partridges which were in sight for her. The man shot them and gave them to her. They got into the canoe to cross the sea on the further shore of which the man lived. The canoe was still in sight when the husband came to the shore. He called to him, “Agia, my partner, bring my wife back.”

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The man in the canoe shot several arrows at the husband saying, “These are all you will get.” They went on until they were out of sight. The husband resolved to do something about it; he was not going to lose his wife without an effort to recover her.

He had with him some beaver teeth which he always carried, for according to his dream, he could do anything he wished with them. He put them by the water’s edge and said, “I want these to turn into a good canoe tonight.” Then he went back to the large camp where his brothers-in-law were and told them someone had stolen his wife. He asked them to go with him and help him fight to get her back. They went with him and when they came to the shore of the lake a fine canoe was floating there, where he had left the beaver teeth. They paddled out on the lake in it. The woman knowing her husband would come after her, had strewed the partridge feathers along the way they had gone. Where they stopped for the night she put the wing feathers. This she did until they were across. The men who were coming behind them followed the trail of the feathers stopping for the night where the long feathers were found. When they came near the shore they saw many canoes drawn up on the beach. There was no camp there, only a small shelter of poles from which smoke was coming out. The pursuers went in and found an old man there and an old woman. There were fish hanging there which the hosts roasted for their guests. After they had eaten they asked the old woman if a stranger had brought a woman there. “Oh yes,” the old woman replied, “a man named ‘Rabbit-tail’ (gatce) brought a fine woman from the other side of the lake. This morning the camp was moved a little way over where there is plenty of wood.” Hoping to deceive the old woman who did not know them, they asked if this man’s tipi was different in any way from the others. “Yes,” she said, “an otterskin is always hanging at the top of it. When you see that you will know it is his tipi.” Seeing a number of fine spears behind the old woman’s lodge they asked her about them. She replied that they belonged to Rabbit-tail who used them to kill people. The strangers asked to be allowed to examine them and the old woman passed them over. Having examined them they killed the old man and old woman with them.

They went to the new camp where they found the tipis already up but the women were still cutting wood. The husband hid near his wife and called her to him. She said the chief would be hard to kill for he had horns on his head. The husband said they would remain there that night. He told her to get her captor to sharpen her knife which was dull. When they went to bed she was advised to play with her husband for a long time so that he would sleep soundly. Just at daybreak they would rush the camp and when she heard them coming she was to cut the man’s throat with the knife he would have newly sharpened for her. Then she was to rush out before Rabbit-tail’s mother, a medicine woman, sleeping on the other side of the fire, could do anything. Just as day was breaking the next morning they rushed the camp and the stolen wife cut the man’s throat and ran out. The old woman asked what dog was lapping up blood. It was the blood gurgling from her son’s throat she heard. The attacking party killed the old woman and everyone else in the camp, using the spears they had taken. The man started back with his wife. When they came to the lake they broke all the canoes they found there before they recrossed.

It was explained that since the horns were on the sides of the man’s head he had to sleep on his back and it was easy to cut his throat.

They crossed the lake in three days traveling fast with supernatural power.


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