Releasing the Buffalo

Long ago, the people were moving from camp to camp on the plain. They had nothey were camping about over on the plain without food. They were playing the hoop and pole game. Raven came from nobody knew where and took off his quiver, the case that held his arrows. Inside. Inside of the quiver were intestines. Magpie took them out. They watched Raven to see which way he would start home. When it was evening he started off flying up towards the opening in the skytoward the sky-hole. “You must all watch him,” they said to each other. Everyone was looking at him. He kept circling about until he lookedbecame very small and few could see him. When he was so far off that no one else could see him, Rattlesnake and Bat could still see himstill could make him out. When he reached the top of the sky, out of everyone else’s sight, he flew east towards the Black Mountains, which runwas at the top of the sky and out of sight, he flew across this way to the east where the Black Mountains range from north to south. When he reached them he went to the place where the canyons metjunction of canyons. Only Rattlesnake and Batthe two could see him.

The people moved their camp four times before they came to him. They found that Raven had a great deal of meat there, which he shared out amonghe had very much meat there which he (Raven) distributed to the people. They asked him about the buffalo but he would not tell them. Then they changed an Apache man intointo a puppy, making his eyes from black obsidian, a volcanic glasseyes for him of black obsidian. They hid him under a bed of branchesbrush bed and moved their camp away.

Raven’s children came to the deserted camp. They found the dog and pickedThe children of Raven came around the deserted camp and finding the dog, took him up. Raven’s smallest child wrapped his arms aroundfolded his arms about him and carried him home. His father said to the children, “He was lying there to find out something.” The child did not want to give up the dog. The father put a poker, a metal rod for stirring the fire, into the flames. When it was burning hot, he brought it near the dog’s eyes. After a while, the dogthe poker in the fire and when it was burning brought it near the dog’s eyes. After a while heExplanation: A poker is a metal rod used to stir a fire. Raven tests the puppy, which cries; the text does not say he actually burns it. cried, “Wau.” “You may keep it, it’sits only a dog. It does not know anything,” the father said. “ItsIt’s name will be īnōldī (choke),” said the child.

Raven had the buffalo all shut up. He opened the door when he wanted to kill some of them. That was how he gotthe way he secured the meat. The dog went along with Raven and his children,them and they fed it. When it was dark and they had all gone to bed, the dog went to the buffalo’s enclosureover there and opened the door. The buffalo started out. They had nearly all gone out before Raven noticed it. He ran over there with his quiver, shooting at them as they ran past. When he had only one arrow leftall his arrows were gone but one, he looked at the door for the man who had become a dog. An old buffalo was going out. ItThere was an old buffalo going out which could hardly get to its feet. The man caught hold of this buffalo and clung to its far side as it went outwent out with it clinging to the opposite side. Raven paid no attention to it. He stood there holding his bow and his last arrow. He looked for the man but could not find him. and stood there holding his bow with the one arrow looking for the man in vain.

The man caught up with the others,overtook the others who had moved their camp away. “I set all the buffalo freeturned the buffalo all loose,” he told them. They turned back and moved their camp to where the buffalo were. Thereback, moving their camp to the buffalo, where they killed many of them and were no longer hungry.

Raven told his children, “You will live on the meat that is left on the backbone and on the eyeballs.”

Long ago the people were hungry. But the man let the buffalo out,they were hungry but he let the buffalo out and then they had plenty to eat. That is how he did itway he did.