Indian Why Stories

Delightful fables, collected by a devotee of Indian lore, recounts many of the legends told to him by tribal members, among them intriguing explanations of "Why the Chipmunk's Back is Striped," "How the Otter Skin Became Great Medicine," "How the Man Found His Mate," and "Why Blackfeet Never Kill Mice." Elders of the Blackfeet, Cree, and Chippewa (Ojibwa) people shared these wonderful tales with Frank B. Linderman in the late nineteenth century and early years of the twentieth century. War Eagle (the fictional name of Linderman?s friend and Chippewa medicine man Pah-nah-to, or Full-of-dew), tells these stories to attentive youngsters after the first frost in the fall. He speaks of animal people, including a deer and an antelope in a footrace, a dancing fox who convulses a buffalo with laughter, a white beaver and ghost people, a huge snake in love with the moon, a sparrow hawk of conscience, and many others. These sparkling tales reveal a reverence for life, honesty, and the unity of creation.