The Killing of the Prairie Dogs, Chiricahua Apache Text ::

The Killing of the Prairie Dogs, Chiricahua Apache Text

excerpted from Chiricahua Apache Texts, with Ethnological Notes

5. The Killing of the Prairie Dogs as told by Lawrence Mithlo

5.1.

Now Child of the Water spoke thus to his mother:

5.2.

The Prairie Dogs cannot kill one close [to them] with their eyes.

5.3.

[Child of the Water] lay hidden from him.

5.4.

Then a Gray Lizard came to him.

5.5.

Then:

5.6.

Then the Gray Lizard spoke thus to him:

5.7.

Then [Child of the Water] did just exactly so.

5.8.

He was carrying [a bag of] salt.

5.9.

[The salt] exploded toward them.

5.10.

Then, when he had finished, he returned to his mother.

Linguistic Notes by Harry Hoijer

Ethnological Notes Morris Opler

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Ethnological Notes Morris Opler

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Ethnological Note 1
This same episode is also related with an owl as the monster. [See Mescalero text 8]

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Ethnological Note 2
This was true of all the monsters who had the power of killing with their eyes. That was why Child of the Water was not killed by the eyes of the Eagle [see Chiricahua text 1.4] when the latter took him to his nest.

University of Virginia Library

Ethnological Notes Morris Opler