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The Traditions of the Hopi, by H.R. Voth, [1905], at sacred-texts.com


65.--HOW THE COYOTE WAS DECEIVED BY THE WREN.

Coyote Woman has four children for whom she hunts mice and other little animals. She goes to spring after water for children, which she brings in her mouth. Once when she returns from spring with mouth full of water, she sees Wren jumping from one rock to another, singing. Coyote laughs and spills water. She goes again to spring and on return again laughs at Wren and

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spills water. She tells Wren that she is going again for water and that if Wren is still doing that on her return she will devour him. While Coyote is gone Wren slips out of his skin and dresses up stone with it so that it looks like Wren. Wren himself slips under rock and when Coyote returns begins to sing. Coyote laughs and spills water. He is very angry and grabs stone dressed as bird and crushes it. She breaks all her teeth so that blood streams from her mouth. She runs back to spring to wash her face and sees bloody face staring at her. She runs to another spring and is scared away in same manner. She visits several other springs with same result, and then rushes westward to Grand Cañon. She jumps into cañon and perishes.


Next: 66.--The Áahtu and the Coyote.