All the other Indian lads loved the dark, so full of stars, and
moonlight; but this boy was afraid of the dark and did not venture
out of his father's wigwam after the sun had set. The other Indian
lads hunted bears, and sailed the swift rapids in frail birch-bark
canoes, and had no fear of anything that ran, or stalked, or flew. But
the Indian boy about which this story is told was afraid of all the
wild creatures of the forest. He never ventured far away from the safe
circle of his home campfire. Most of all was the boy afraid of Hoots,
the bear.
This was because Hoots was a part of the forest. He hid himself by
day, for he was afraid of bows and swift flying arrows. But at night,
the bear prowled near the Indian camp, and could be heard from one end
of the forest to the other, his great feet crunching through the dried
bushes and twigs.
In those days the Indians believed that a good spirit, called the
manito, watched over them, and guided them, and kept them from harm.
The story tells that the manito was walking one day through the trees
of the forest when he saw this little Indian boy, hiding behind a pine
tree and giving loud cries of terror.
"What is this that I hear?" asked the manito. "No Indian boy ever
cries. Come forth that I may see who the coward is, and learn of what
he is afraid.
Pages:
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206