United States or Cabo Verde ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Little Luke hit him again, this time squarely on the head. Then with a stone he made sure that A-tos-sa would never try to eat young birds again. After he had finished with the snake, he picked up the young bird which had fallen to the ground. It seemed more scared than hurt, so he put it carefully into the nest, where there were two other young birds. Then he went on up toward the woods. Mrs.
From the end of this, a few quick leaps carried him to a brush pile. A jump or two more brought him to a rock and yet a few more to a stone fence. Once there, he felt safe. At the least alarm, he could run into a hole too small for any of his foes except, perhaps, A-tos-sa, whom he dreaded more than any of the others.
"'But how shall we get the snake-skins? asked Grandfather Kit-chee, the head of the family. "'That is easy, answered the Master of Life. 'A-tos-sa, as you know, sheds his skin. If you look sharp, you can find the cast-off skins almost anywhere. Do as I have said, and you will be safe. Even Mee-ko the Squirrel and others of your enemies will be afraid of the snake-skin and let your nests alone.
A-tos-sa had a half-grown bird by the wing and was trying to swallow it. The young bird was strong enough to flutter a good deal and Mother Chee-wink had flapped her wings in the snake's eyes and pecked his head, so that he had not been able to get a good hold. Little Luke struck at once. The stick hit the snake and he let go of the bird and slid down to the ground.
"'I am sorry for you, said he, when he had heard their story, 'and will tell you what to do. As you say, your worst enemy is Kag-ax the Weasel. Now Kag-ax is more afraid of A-tos-sa the Snake than of any other creature in the whole world. He cannot bear even the sight of a snake-skin. You must weave a snake-skin into each one of your nests. Then he will not dare to trouble you.
Chee-wink flew off to a tall sapling near by and watched him without saying a word. At first he could not see anything to disturb anybody. But he knew that Mrs. Chee-wink would never have made all that fuss for nothing. So he took hold of the fir bush and pulled the branches apart. Then he understood. He had almost put his hand on A-tos-sa the Big Blacksnake.
You saved Chee-wink's fledglings from the cruel fangs of A-tos-sa, and you put the young one back into O-loo-la's nest safely. "Two things you must remember if you wish to keep this magic power. You must never needlessly or in sport hurt or kill any of the wild creatures that the Master of Life has made and you must tell no one what has happened to you.
Mee-ko the Red Squirrel, A-tos-sa the Snake, Ka-ka-go the Crow, and many others learned to rob our nests and eat our young ones. "Every one of the birds tried to hide her nest, but in spite of the best that they could do, the robbers would often find them. The worst of all our enemies was Kag-ax the Weasel. The Kit-chee families suffered terribly.
"Oh, no," replied Father Kit-chee, "I found that skin over yonder in the pasture. You know that A-tos-sa the Snake sheds his skin when it grows old and stiff, and grows a new one that fits him better. We just pick up the cast-off skins and build them into our nests." "What on earth do you do it for?" asked the little boy. "I wouldn't want such a thing around my bed.
A-bal-ka never harmed any one, nor did he scold and steal like Mee-ko the Red Squirrel. Yet he had many foes. Ko-ko-ka the Owl, Ak-sip the Hawk, Kee-wuk the Fox, Kag-ax the Weasel, Ko-sa the Mink, and A-tos-sa the Snake were always ready to pounce upon him at sight and make a meal of him. Even Mee-ko was not to be trusted.
Word Of The Day