(McGrath, that was a funny, and really quite amazing, little story)

The camp was covered in snow, the tepees hurriedly set up in a ring in the small clearing surrounded by cliffs. The people were cold and had eaten nothing but some pemmican for two days. This night Joseph had said that they could build some small banked fires up hard against the cliff, because he thought that the fresh snow might have covered their paths. Red-tailed Hawk and Shadow had brought in some rabbits, and the people feasted. It seemed they might actually escape to the North Country, maybe tomorrow or the next day. The children stayed up late by the warmth of the fires,and Raccoon Woman sang some funny songs for them about animal spirits that were stealing little things from the lodges.

Joseph came up to the fire, and his woman brought a basket of dried berries that she shared with the laughing children."Joseph!" cried out his nephew Bear Paw."Tell us a story!" At first Joseph just laughed and lit his hatchet/pipe, saying "I have no more stories. You've gotten all of them out of me." Bear Paw came and sat next to his Uncle,the Chief."Then tell us an old story,Uncle! Tell the one about Coyote and the Bear!" Joseph smiled and looked at the boy, seeing Bear's Father in his face, his Father who had fallen by the side of the trail like so many others on their way to this place. At last Joseph stood up. "All this happened in the old time,before there were any human beings."

Coyote was lazy.He would never hunt,or fish,or find berries growing.He would only spend his time thinking up ways to trick other animals out of their food. When Brown Bear was fishing, Coyote would sneak up behind and wait until bear had hooked a fat salmon on his claw, then he would snatch it and run to a hole on the ground that was too small for Brown Bear to get in. Once Coyote found a dead fish on the bank and he wrapped a long reed around it's body. Then he got a bunch of black rocks he had found and sat on the bank beside them,waiting for Heron. Heron was a great fisherman, but not as smart as Coyote. When Heron saw him, he said"Good morning, Coyote. Why are you fooling around with those rocks?" And Coyote said,"You say I'm fooling around, but you are wrong. I am fishing."Heron laughed at this, but he was curious."How can you fish with those rocks?" Coyote said "it's easy. These are magic rocks. I just stack them up, put a reed in the water, and wait for a salmon to grab on to it. Watch!" and that crafty Coyote stacked up the rocks,danced around them like this... and pulled out the reed with the fish on it. Heron was amazed, and said"where did you find these rocks?" Coyote smiled and said "oh there are no more. I was given them by a rock spirit." He sat and ate his fish,which did not taste good, and he rolled it in the mud so that Heron wouldn't smell it.Heron said "I have a basket of dried salmon I would give to you for your rocks." Coyote said "give me two baskets and the rocks are yours." Heron did this, and Coyote sat on a warm rock eating dried fish while he watched Heron stacking the rocks and pulling out every reed he could find from the stream. Coyote began to laugh at this, rolling around on the rock and grabbing his full belly. He called out "Heron! You are more stupid even than Bear!At least he knows when I have stolen fish from him!" Coyote did not know that Brown Bear had seen all of this.

Soon the wind became cold from the North, and the stream was locked in ice. Snow fell across the forest, as Coyote sat in his hole eating the last of the dried fish."Winter is coming and I am afraid of freezing or starving," he said to himself. Then he had an idea. Brown Bear slept in a cozy den all winter, and in the spring he was strong and rested. Coyote went to see Bear."Oh Great Hunter,"said the sneaky Coyote,"take me into your den for the Winter and I will teach you the magic of fishing with rocks."The Bear took Coyote to his den and said "you must do everything I say or you will freeze. First, cover yourself with dung." Coyote did this." Now put these thorns and bristles in your tail."Coyote did this."Now stick your nose in this fire and breath in the heat so that you will have fire inside all Winter." Coyote did this and his muzzle suddenly burst into flames! He ran from Bear's cave going yelp-yelp-yelp! until he found some snow to stick his face into. When Coyote looked around, he saw Bear,Heron, and all the other animals laughing at him.

And Coyote spent that cold Winter scrounging for food on his own, while the other animals slept in warm dens. And he still does. And sometimes if you are quite quiet, you might hear him crying in the dark about his burnt nose.

Joseph sat alone by the fire as the people went off to their lodges. He knew the soldiers were just a short way behind them now, and in the early morning he would go to the top of the ridge where he could see them, and they would see him. This would be the end of the long path they had taken from the Camas Prairie, and there would be no more fighting. Maybe in the morning they might start the long journey home.

LEJ