Wabeda always hated to see a good thing go to waste.His eyes spoke words to me,for he and Ihad been friends for a long time.When I was afraid of anything in the woods,he would get in front of me at once and gently wag his tail.He always made it a point to look directly in my face.
His kind,large eyes gave me a thousand assur-ances.When I was perplexed,he would hang about me until he understood the situation.
Many times I believed he saved my life by utter-ing the dog word in time.
Most animals,even the dangerous grizzly,do not care to be seen when the two-legged kind and his dog are about.When I feared a surprise by a bear or a grey wolf,I would say to Wabeda:"Now,my dog,give your war-whoop:"and immediately he would sit up on his haunches and bark "to beat the band"as you white boys say.When a bear or wolf heard the noise,he would be apt to retreat.
Sometimes I helped Wabeda and gave a war-whoop of my own.This drove the deer away as well,but it relieved my mind.
When he appealed to me on this occasion,there-fore,I said:"Come,my dog,let us bury your bone so that no Shunktokecha will take it."He appeared satisfied with my suggestion,so we went out together.
We dug in the snow and buried our bone wrapped up in a piece of old blanket,partly burned;then we covered it up again with snow.
We knew that the coyote would not touch any-thing burnt.I did not put it up a tree because Wabeda always objected to that,and I made it a point to consult his wishes whenever I could.
I came in and Wabeda followed me with two short rib bones in his mouth.Apparently he did not care to risk those delicacies.
"There,"exclaimed Uncheedah,"you still in-sist upon bringing in some sort of bone!"but Ibegged her to let him gnaw them inside because it was so cold.Having been granted this privilege,he settled himself at my back and I became ab-sorbed in some specially nice arrows that uncle was making.
"O,uncle,you must put on three feathers to all of them so that they can fly straight,"I sug-gested.
"Yes,but if there are only two feathers,they will fly faster,"he answered.
"Woow!"Wabeda uttered his suspicions.
"Woow!"he said again,and rushed for the entrance of the teepee.He kicked me over as he went and scattered the burning embers.
"En na he na!"Uncheedah exclaimed,but he was already outside.
"Wow,wow,wow!Wow,Wow,wow!"
A deep guttural voice answered him.
Out I rushed with my bow and arrows in my hand.
"Come,uncle,come!A big cinnamon bear!"I shouted as I emerged from the teepee.
Uncle sprang out and in a moment he had sent a swift arrow through the bear's heart.The ani-mal fell dead.He had just begun to dig up Wabeda's bone,when the dog's quick ear had heard the sound.
"Ah,uncle,Wabeda and I ought to have at least a little eaglet's feather for this.I too sent my small arrow into the bear before he fell,"I ex-claimed."But I thought all bears ought to be in their lodges in the winter time.What was this one doing at this time of the year and night?""Well,"said my uncle,"I will tell you.Among the tribes,some are naturally lazy.The cinnamon bear is the lazy one of his tribe.He alone sleeps out of doors in the winter and because he has not a warm bed,he is soon hungry.Sometimes he lives in the hollow trunk of a tree,where he has made a bed of dry grass;but when the night is very cold,like to-night,he has to move about to keep himself from freezing and as he prowls around,he gets hungry."We dragged the huge carcass within our lodge.
"O,what nice claws he has,uncle!"I exclaimed eagerly."Can I have them for my necklace?""It is only the old medicine men who wear them regularly.The son of a great warrior who has killed a grizzly may wear them upon a pub-lic occasion,"he explained.
"And you are just like my father and are con-sidered the best hunter among the Santees and Sis-setons.You have killed many grizzlies so that no one can object to my bear's-claws necklace,"Isaid appealingly.
White Foot-print smiled."My boy,you shall have them,"he said,"but it is always bet-ter to earn them yourself."He cut the claws off carefully for my use.
"Tell me,uncle,whether you could wear these claws all the time?"I asked.
"Yes,I am entitled to wear them,but they are so heavy and uncomfortable,"he replied,with a superior air.
At last the bear had been skinned and dressed and we all resumed our usual places.Uncheedah was particularly pleased to have some more fat for her cooking.
"Now,grandmother,tell me the story of the bear's fat.I shall be so happy if you will,"Ibegged.
"It is a good story and it is true.You should know it by heart and gain a lesson from it,"she replied."It was in the forests of Minnesota,in the country that now belongs to the Ojibways.
From the Bedawakanton Sioux village a young married couple went into the woods to get fresh venison.The snow was deep;the ice was thick.
Far away in the woods they pitched their lonely teepee.The young man was a well-known hunter and his wife a good maiden of the village.
"He hunted entirely on snow-shoes,because the snow was very deep.His wife had to wear snow-shoes too,to get to the spot where they pitched their tent.It was thawing the day they went out,so their path was distinct after the freeze came again.
"The young man killed many deer and bears.
His wife was very busy curing the meat and try-ing out the fat while he was away hunting each day.In the evenings she kept on trying the fat.
He sat on one side of the teepee and she on the other.
"One evening,she had just lowered a kettle of fat to cool,and as she looked into the hot fat she saw the face of an Ojibway scout looking down at them through the smoke-hole.She said nothing,nor did she betray herself in any way.
"After a little she said to her husband in a nat-ural voice:'Marpeetopah,some one is looking at us through the smoke hole,and I think it is an enemy's scout.'
