THINGS TO THINK ABOUT If you have read the story of “The Early Cave-men,” tell how the cave that was flooded was made. Can you think of any other way in which a cave might be made? If you have ever seen a shallow hole in a cliff, see if you can find out how it was made. If such a hole was made in a very soft rock See if you can find a piece of limestone. What do we use limestone for? If we wanted a house of limestone, what would we do to get it? When the Cave-men wanted a limestone house, what did they do? Chew-chew Chew-chew was the oldest woman in the cave at the Fork of the River. She was not as strong as she once had been; but she was still able to lead the women in their work. Her sons’ wives carried the heaviest burdens, but Chew-chew still carried heavy loads. Chew-chew was the wisest woman in the cave. When the other women did not know what to do, they always asked Chew-chew. The bravest men were always glad to get Chew-chew’s advice. The children thought nobody could tell such stories as Chew-chew told. Chew-chew and all of her children belonged to the Horse clan. All the children in those days took the clan name of their mother. Chew-chew’s sons had captured wives from the Reindeer clan. And so the children in Chew-chew’s cave belonged to the Reindeer clan. It thus happened that in every cave there were people of different clans. But since Chew-chew was the oldest woman in the cave, we shall call the people at the Fork of the River by the name of the Horse clan. image Chew-chew often told the children about her first home. She told them about the cave near the River of Snow, which was much like the cave which sheltered No one knew at the time what made the rock fall. No one knew there was no need of being afraid. Some one said that the god of the cliff was angry and that he had pushed the rock down. Everybody believed the story. So nobody dared go near the cave. But the Cave-men needed a shelter. So they offered gifts to the god of the cliffs. When they thought he was satisfied, they all went back to the cave. And after a while they used the big rock as a table for their work. Chew-chew wanted the children to grow to be brave and wise. So she told them stories of the bravest and wisest people of her clan. She told them stories about their grandfathers who were the heroes of the olden times. And Fleetfoot never grew tired of hearing about the wonderful things which his grandfathers did. And so Chew-chew taught the children all she thought they ought to know. And they looked into her eyes and listened to all that she said. THINGS TO DO If there are cliffs or shelving rocks near by, go and see them. Find places where you think caves may form. Find out why it is that the rocks shelve. Why does a shelving rock sometimes break and fall to the ground? Model the cliffs which you find. Model a cave which is formed in a cliff. Tell a story which you think Chew-chew might have told to the children. Draw a picture of something which you have played. |