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Coyote and Owl, Mescalero Apache Text

excerpted from Chiricahua Apache Texts, with Ethnological Notes

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2. Coyote and Owl as told by Charles Smith

2.1.

From there Coyote went on farther along the road.

2.2.

Then he went in that direction.

2.3.

He looked down to the ground.

2.4.

"Come down. Let's sit on the ground. Tell me stories,"

2.5.

"All right, Coyote. I'll tell you stories,"

2.6.

Then Coyote looked at him.

2.7.

"I'll show you the power of what are my ears, if you like them,"

2.8.

"Now then, sit facing the east,"

2.9.

Then he moved toward him from the south also.

2.10.

Then Owl had done so for him four times.

2.11.

"Yes. I am grateful for it, friend. Thank you,"

2.12.

Owl stood before him.

2.13.

2.14.

Then, as he started to leave Owl, he said to him:

2.15.

"Friend, that which I [would] eat right now is buffalo intestines and roasted buffalo ribs,"

2.16.

"I will not eat with you,"

2.17.

"Let's eat. Then we'll go away from each other,"

2.18.

2.19.

Then that which he had named, prepared that way, lay scattered about.

2.20.

2.21.

As Coyote was speaking to him, he had started to move toward him.

2.22.

Then Coyote returned to his home.

2.23.

"Coyote, we are coming to [visit] you,"

2.24.

2.25.

"Wife, spread [a robe] for those people. They will sit here,"

2.26.

Then she spread [a robe] for them.

2.27.

"They come to me here because of something which I shall do for them,"

2.28.

"What do you know that you will do for them? You are crazy. You cannot do anything for them,"

2.29.

"What did you come for? What shall I do for you?"

2.30.

2.31.

2.32.

"Make [my] people for me like your [people]

2.33.

Then Coyote got up.

2.34.

Then the two of them sat down facing the east.

2.35.

2.36.

Then the two went toward the Owl man with them.

2.37.

They moved their hands over them.

2.38.

Then Owl man said:

2.39.

"Are you ready to eat now?"

2.40.

As Old Man Owl was about to say yes, [the other two] said yes and no simultaneously.

2.41.

2.42.

Then Coyote brought to them some hard dry meat that could not be chewed.

2.43.

Linguistic Notes by Harry Hoijer

Ethnological Notes Morris Opler

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"Wife, spread [a robe] for those people. They will sit here,"

(2.25)[25]

"Shóͅóͅdé, 'aań nndé góbá'égóͅłtił. 'Áshíͅ ńgodibiͅiͅ."

Shóͅóͅdé bi'isdzáńń yiiłndiná'a.

"Wife, spread [a robe] for those people. They will sit here,"

Coyote said to his wife.

[_]

(2.25) Linguistic Notes

1. shóͅóͅdé 'wife'. This word means literally 'friend, partner' but is restricted in usage to the coyote stories. See Linguistic Note to Chiricahua text 10.3, §1.

2. góbá'égóͅłtił 'spread [a robe] for them'. góbá- 'for them' > góbi- 3rd person dual pronoun plus á- 'for'. This special form for the 3rd person dual [object and poss.; see Grammatical Sketch, §§6 and 11] is more often used in Mesc. than in Chir.

'égóͅłtił, 2nd person imp. of 0é-go-...[si- perf.]-ł-tił 'to spread out a fabric-like object' [act. intr.]. No further analysis is possible.

3. ńgodibiͅiͅ 'they will sit down'. 3rd person imp. of ní-di-...[si- perf. -biͅiͅ- 'several sit down' [act. intr.]. ní- is probably ni- terminative, that prefix taking a high tone when it precedes a prefix beginning with -d-. di- inceptive. The deictic prefix go- functions here as a 3rd person dual [or plural] subject.