Ojibwa

A MAN found himself standing alone on the prairie. He was very large and strong. He thought to himself, “How did I come here? Am I all alone on the earth? I must travel until I find the abode of men.”

So he started out. After a long time he came to a wood. There were decayed stumps there, very old, as if cut in the olden times. Again he journeyed a long time. He came to a wood in which there were more stumps, newly cut. Then he came to the fresh trail of people. He saw wood just cut, lying in heaps. At sunset he came out of the forest. He saw a village of many lodges standing on rising ground.

He said, “I will go there on the run.” He ran. When he came to the first lodge, he sprang over it. Those within saw something pass over the smoke hole. They heard a thump on the ground.

They said, “What is that?” They ran out. They invited him to enter. Many warriors were in the wigwam, and an old chief.

The chief said, “Where are you going? What is your name?” He said, “I am in search of adventures. I am Pau-puk-kee-wis.” Then they laughed.

After a short time he went on. A young man went with him as his mesh-in-au-wa, as his pipe bearer.

As they journeyed, Pau-puk-kee-wis did strange things. He leaped over trees. He whirled on one foot until dust clouds were flying.

One day a large village of wigwams came in their trail. They went to it. The chief told them of evil manitoes who had killed all the people going to that village. War parties had been sent against them. The warriors were all killed.

Pau-puk-kee-wis said, “I will go and visit them.”

The chief said, “Oh, no. They are evil. They will kill you.”

Pau-puk-kee-wis said, “I will go and visit them.”

Then the chief said, “I will send twenty warriors with you.”

So Pau-puk-kee-wis, with his pipe bearer and twenty warriors, started off at once. They came near that lodge. Pau-puk-kee-wis said, “Hide here. Thus you will be safe. You will see what I do.” He went to that lodge. He entered.

The manitoes were very ugly. They were evil looking. There were a father and four sons. They offered him food. He refused it. The old manito said, “What have you come for?”

“Nothing,” said Pau-puk-kee-wis.

“Do you want to wrestle?” asked the manito.

“Yes,” said Pau-puk-kee-wis.

At once the eldest brother rose and they began to wrestle. These manitoes were very evil. They wished to kill Pau-puk-kee-wis in order to eat him. But that man was very strong. He tripped the manito. Then he threw him down. His head struck on a stone.

The next brother wrestled with Pau-puk-kee-wis. He fell. Then the other two wrestled. All four fell on the ground. The old manito began to run. Pau-puk-kee-wis pursued him. He pursued him in a very queer way, just for fun. Sometimes he leaped over him and ran ahead. Sometimes he pushed him ahead from behind.

All the twenty warriors cried, “Ha! ha! ha! Ha! ha! ha! Pau-puk-kee-wis is driving him.”

At last Pau-puk-kee-wis killed him. Thus all the evil manitoes were dead.

Then they looked on the bones of the warriors and people who had been killed by those evil ones. Then Pau-puk-kee-wis took three arrows. He performed a ceremony to Gitche Manito. He shot one arrow. He cried, “You who are lying down, rise up or you will be hit.” At once the bones all moved to one place. He shot a second arrow. He cried, “You who are lying down, rise up, or you will be hit.” The proper bones moved together, toward each other.

He shot a third arrow. He cried, “You who are lying down, rise up, or you will be hit.” The people became alive again. Then Pau-puk-kee-wis led them back to the village of the friendly chief.

This one then came to him with his council. He said, “You should rule my people. You only are able to defend them.”

Pau-puk-kee-wis said, “I am going on a journey. Let my pipe bearer be chief.” So he was.

Pau-puk-kee-wis began his journey. “Ho! ho! ho!” cried all the people. “Come back again. Ho! ho! ho!”

He journeyed on. He came to a lake made by beavers.[19] He stood on the beaver dam and watched. He saw the head of a beaver peering out.

“Make me a beaver like yourself,” said Pau-puk-kee-wis. He wanted to see how beavers lived.

“I will go and ask what the others have to say,” said Beaver.

Soon all the beavers looked out to see if he were armed. He had left his bow and arrow in a hollow tree.

“Make me a beaver,” said Pau-puk-kee-wis. “I wish to live among you.”

“Yes,” said Beaver chief. “Lie down.” He lay down. He found himself a beaver.

“You must make me large,” he said.

“Yes,” said Beaver chief. “When we get into the lodge, you shall be made very large.”

So they all dived down into the water again. They passed heaps of tree limbs and logs lying on the bottom of the river.

“What are these for?” asked Pau-puk-kee-wis.

“For our winter food,” said Beaver chief.

Now when they got into the lodge, they made Pau-puk-kee-wis very large. They made him ten times larger than themselves.

Soon a beaver came running in. He cried, “The Indians are hunting us.” At once all the beavers ran out of the lodge door on the bottom of the river. Pau-puk-kee-wis was too large. He could not get out. The Indians broke down the dam. They lowered the water. They broke in the lodge. They saw that one.

“Ty-au! Ty-au!” cried the Indians. “Me-sham-mek, the chief of the beavers, is here.”

So they killed him. Yet Pau-puk-kee-wis kept thinking. They placed his great body on a pole. Seven or eight Indians carried it. They went back to their lodges. They sent out invitations for a great feast. Then the women came out to skin him on the snow. When his flesh became cold, the Jee-bi of Pau-puk-kee-wis went away. His spirit went away.

So Pau-puk-kee-wis found himself standing alone on a prairie. Soon there came near by a herd of elk. He thought, “They are very happy. I will be an elk.” He went near them, and said, “Make me an elk. I wish to live among you.”

They said, “Yes. Get down on your hands and knees.”

Soon he found himself an elk.

“I want big horns and big feet,” said Pau-puk-kee-wis. “I want to be very large.”

“Yes, yes,” said the elk. So they made him very large. At last they said, “Are you large enough?” Pau-puk-kee-wis said, “Yes.”

So he lived with the elks. One cold day they all went into the woods for shelter. Soon some of the herd came racing by like a strong wind. At once all began to run.

“Keep out on the prairies,” they said to Pau-puk-kee-wis.

But he was so large he got tangled up in the thick woods. He soon smelt the hunters. They were all following his trail. Pau-puk-kee-wis jumped high. He broke down saplings. Then the hunters shot him. He jumped higher. He jumped over the tree tops. Then all the hunters shot him. So they killed him. Then they skinned him. When his flesh became cold, the spirit of Pau-puk-kee-wis went away.

Thus Pau-puk-kee-wis had many adventures. After a long time Manabozho killed him. Then he was really dead because he was killed in his human form. Manabozho said, “You shall not be permitted to live on the earth again. I will make you a war eagle.”

Thus Pau-puk-kee-wis became a war eagle. He lives in the sky.