University of Virginia Library

Introductory

The Jicarilla are a tribe of Athapascan stock, formerly occupying the mountain region about the headwaters of the Rio Grande, in northern New Mexico and the adjacent portion of Colorado, and ranging eastward into the plains. From their racial affinity they are officially known as Jicarilla Apaches, although they have no political connection with the Apache proper, the Mescalero, or the Navaho, all of whom they regard as enemies. With the Ute, as also with the Indians of Taos pueblo, they lave long been on terms of close friendship. They are expert basket-makers, whence the came Jicarilla, meaning, in Spanish, "Little Basket." They call themselves Dine', the generic term used by so many tribes of cognate stock, and are known to the plains Indians as Mountain Apache. The Spaniards established missions among them two centuries ago, but with indifferent result. In 1854 they entered into treaty relations with the United States. They are now gathered upon a reservation in northwestern New Mexico, where at the last report they numbered 853, remaining still a primitive people, with rich material for the ethnologist.

The following specimen myth was obtained on the reservation in November, 1897, during a short visit in connection with other work. The informant was one of their principal medicine-men, the interpreter being his son Ásiñsti, "Slow," better known to the whites under his school name of Ed. Ladd.

The Myth

In the beginning the earth was covered with water, and all living things were below in the underworld. Then people could

talk, the animals could talk, the trees could talk, and the rocks could talk.

It was dark in the underworld, and they used eagle plumes for torches. The people and the animals that go about by day wanted more light, but the night animals—the Bear, the Panther, and the Owl—wanted darkness. They disputed long, and at last agreed to play the käyoñ'ti[1] game to decide the matter. It was agreed that if the day animals won there should be light, but if the night animals won it should be always dark.

The game began, but the Magpie and the Quail, which love the light and have sharp eyes, watched until they could see the button through the thin wood of the hollow stick, and they told the people under which one it was. They played once, and the people won. The morning star came out and the Black-bear ran and hid in the darkness. They played again, and the people won. It grew bright in the east and the Brown-bear ran and hid himself in a dark place. They played a third time, and the people won. It grew brighter in the east and the Mountain-lion slunk away into the darkness. They played a fourth time, and again the people won. The Sun came up in the east, and it was day, and the Owl flew away and hid himself.

Still the people were below and did not see many things, but the Sun staid higher up and saw more. The Sun looked through a hole and saw that there was another world, this earth above. He told the people and they wanted to go there; so they built four mounds by which to reach the upper world. In the east they built a mound and planted it with all kinds of fruits and berries that were black in color. In the south they built another mound and planted on it all kinds of fruits that were blue. In the west they built another mound and planted upon it fruits that were yellow; and in the north they built a mound, and on it they planted all fruits of variegated colors.

The mounds grew into mountains and the bushes went from blossom to ripened berries, and one day two girls climbed up to pick berries and to gather flowers to tie in their hair. Then the mountains stopped growing. The people wondered, and they sent Tornado to learn the cause. Tornado goes everywhere and searches into every corner, and he found the two girls picking berries on the mountain, and he came back and told the people. Then they sent Tornado again to bring the girls home, and he brought them back to their people, but the mountains did not grow any more. This is why a boy stops growing when he goes for the first time with a woman. If he did not go with a woman he would continue to grow constantly taller.

The mountains had stopped growing while their tops were yet a long way from the upper world, and the people debated how they could get up to the earth. They laid feathers crosswise for a ladder, but the feathers were too weak and they broke. They made a second ladder of larger feathers, but again they were too weak. They made a third ladder, of eagle feathers, but even these were not strong enough to bear their weight. Then the Buffalo came and offered his right horn to make a ladder, three others came and offered their right horns also. The Buffalo horns were strong, and by their help the people were able to climb up through the hole to the surface of the earth; but their weight bent the Buffalo horns, which before were straight, so that they have been curved ever since.

When the people had come up front under the earth they fastened the Sun and Moon with spider threads, so that they could not get away, and sent them up into the sky to give light. But water covered the whole earth, so four Storms went to roll the waters away. The Black-storm blew to the east and rolled up the waters into the eastern ocean. The Blue-storm blew to the south and rolled up the waters in that direction. The Yellow storm rolled up the waters in the west, and the Varicolored-storm went to the north and rolled up the waters there. So were formed the four oceans—in the east, the south, the west, and the north. Having rolled up the waters, the Storms returned to where the people were waiting at the mouth of the hole.

First went out the Polecat, but the ground was still soft, and his legs sank in the black mud and remain black ever since. They sent the Tornado to bring him back, for the time was not yet. The Badger went out, but he, too, sank in the mud, and his legs were blackened, so they sent the Tornado to call him back. The Beaver went out, wading through the mud and swimming through the water. He began at once to build a dam to save the water still remaining in pools, and he did not

return. The Tornado was sent after him and found him at work, and asked him why he had not come back. said the Beaver. said Tornado, and they went back together. They waited again, and then sent out the Crow to see if it was yet time. The Crow found the earth dry, and many dead frogs, fish, and reptiles lying on the ground. He began picking out their eyes, and did not return until Tornado was sent after him. The people were angry when they found he had been eating carrion, and they changed his color to black, which before was gray.

The earth was now all dry, excepting the four oceans around it and the lake in the center, where the Beaver had dammed up the waters. All the people came up. They went east until they came to the ocean; then they turned south until they came again to the ocean; then they turned west until they came again to the oceau, and then they turned north, and as they went each tribe stopped where it would. But the Jicarillas continued to circle around the place where they had come up from the underworld. Three times they went around, when the Ruler[2] became displeased, and asked them where they wished to stop. They said,

so he led them to a place very near to Taos and left them there, and then the Taos Indians lived near them.

Then he laid down the great mountains—the mountain beyond Durango, west of the Rio Grande; the Sierra Blanca, east of the Rio Grande, and the other mountain to the southeast of Taos. He made also the four great rivers and gave them their names—in the north the Napeshti, the "flint arrow" river (the Arkansas); in the east the Canadian; in the south the Rio Grande, and in the west the Chama, and lie gave the country to the Jicarillas. He made other rivers, but did not give them names.

While the Jicarillas were moving about they by accident left a girl behind them near the place where they had come up from the underworld. The girl's name was Yo'lkai'-istû'n, the "Whitebead woman." The Sun shone upon her as she sat and she bore a boy child, and the Moon beamed upon her as she slept and she bore another boy child. The first born was stronger than the secoud, as the Sun is stronger than the Moon. When the boys were large enough to walk the Sun told her where to find her people, and she went to them.

The boys lived with their mother near Taos. She made them a wheel-and-stick game to play with, and told them not to roll the wheel toward the north. They played three days, and the Sun's son rolled the wheel toward the east,the south, and the west, when his brother persuaded him to roll it toward the north to see what would happen. Then he rolled the wheel toward the north, and it rolled without stopping until it was out of sight. The boys decided to go after it, and they followed its track along the ground until they came to a house built like a Pueblo house. The wheel had gone around to the north side and was lying ipon the flat roof. An Owl lived in the house. He heard a noise outside, and sent his child to see what was there. The young owl climbed up the ladder and looked out the doorway on the roof and saw tire wheel lying there and the boys standing below. He got the wheel and then called the boys, but they would not come. Then the old Owl went and called the boys, and they came into the house. They asked for their wheel, which they saw hanging up on the wall, but the old Owl called his wife and told her to build a fire and fill the pot with water. When the water was boiling he seized the boys and put them into the pot. When he thought the meat was cooked he took the pot from the fire and dipped the boys out with a large spoon, but they were both alive and asked for their wheel. He put them under the ashes to bake, but when he took them out they were alive and asked again for their wheel. The Owl said no more, but gave them their wheel, and they returned home to their mother.

Soon afterward the Sun sent word to the woman to send his son to him. The Moon-boy staid at home with his mother, but the Sun-boy went and found his father at home. His father received him kindly and gave him a bow and arrows and a dress of turquois, with turquois bracelets and wristguard anal a necklace of turquois beads for his neck. Then the Sun said to him,

His father told him to go first against a great Frog which lived under the water in a lake by Taos,[3] and sucked in everybody who came near. His breath was like sleet lightning at night, and he had sucked so many people under the water that there were very few Taos Indians remaining.

The boy left his turquois dress and weapons with his father and went as a poor boy, with torn clothing and neglected hair. He came to Taos and asked the people for food, but they laughed at his appearance and refused him food or shelter. He went away and slept outside the pueblo. It was winter, but he was the son of the Sun and the cold could not hurt him. The Pueblo store-rooms were full of corn. The boy outside waved his hand and all the grains disappeared from the cobs, and instead were only white worms. In the morning, when the Pueblos found the corn all gone, they were sorry for the way they had treated the boy, who they now knew was a wonder-worker, so they went to him and asked his pardon. The boy forgave them and waved his hand, and again the white grains of corn were on the cob. Now they gave him plenty of corn and bread and he had a good dinner. Then they told him about the great Frog and asked his help in the matter. He promised to help them, and after he had eaten he went out and went up, like a lightening flash, to his father, the Sun, to get his turquois dress and his weapons. His father gave him also a wheel of black stone, a wooden wheel of blue, another wheel of yellow stone, and a varicolored wheel of wood. He gave him likewise four firesticks2, black, blue, yellow, and varicolored.

When the boy returned to Taos and the Pueblos saw how finely he was dressed, they gave him a large armlet of red beads (coral ?) for his right arm and another of white beads (shell ?) for his left arm. He went down to the lake and stood on the east shore early in the morning as the Sun was coming up. The Frog put his head up from the lake and tried to suck him in, but the boy could not be moved, and the Frog dived under the water again. Then the boy threw the wheel of black stone into the center of the lake, and the water fell a little. He went around to the south shore and threw in the blue wheel, and the water fell yet a little more. He stood on the west shore and threw in the yellow wheel, and the water grew shallow and muddy. Then he went around to the north and threw in the varicolored wheel of wood, and at once the water was dried up, and he saw the Frog's house in the center of the lake, like a pueblo house, with four doors, one on each side, and a row of stepping stones from each door to the edge of the lake.

He went around to the east side of the lake, where he had stood at sunrise, and crossed over on the stepping stones to the first door. On each side of the door stood guard a Pueblo Indian who had been sucked in by the Frog. They had been put there to warn the Frog should an enemy approach ; but the boy only spoke to them and they were unable to move. At the south door he found two bears on guard, sitting upon their haunches. At the west door he found two immense snakes, with heads erect and hissing, and at the north door he found two panthers. To each in turn he spoke, and they were motionless and allowed him to pass. Then he went inside the house, and there he found the Great Frog sitting in a room from which a door opened on each of the four sides. He asked the Frog where were all the people who had been sucked into the lake, but the Frog said he knew nothing about them. The boy knew this was not true, so he took out his four firesticks and twirled them rapidly until the room was full of thick smoke that choked the Frog, and it fell down dead. Then he told the two Pueblo guards to release their people, and they opened the four doors around the sides of the room, and all the rooms were filled with Pueblos who had been sucked under the water by the Frog. There were also a great many little frogs, the children of the Great Frog; but they were too small to be dangerous, so the boy let them live, but told them they should never grow larger. From them came the present small frogs. The boy returned to Taos with all the people he had set free from under the water. The Pueblos here very grateful to have their friends restored to them and invited him to bring his mother and brother to Taos for anything they needed. He brought them there to visit for a while, and then went back to his father, the Sun, to see what was for him to do next. His mother and brother were afraid to stay alone, on account of the many dangerous things in the world, so they did not go back to their own camp, but remained with their friends at Taos.

When Nayé-nayesxû'ni came again, like a lightning flash, to his father, the Sun told him he must now go and destroy a dangerous Elk, who lived near the lake called Kó-náhitli[4] and ranged over the whole Jicarilla country. This Elk was of immense size—his youngest child was larger than any elk we know now—and very fierce and swift, so that he could overtake any one whom he pursued, and always tore him to pieces with his horns.

His father gave him four flat round stones and four firesticks—black, blue, yellow, and particolored—together with a bolt of lightning, and the boy took them and started to look for the Elk. He went first to the lake, but the Elk was not there, and he continued the search until at last he found the Elk upon Dzi-'intsaá mountain[5], lying down with his face toward the east, on the lookout for any traveler who might be coming across the plain. While the boy was wondering how he could approach the Elk without being seen, a Gopher came up, to whom he told his story. The Gopher agreed to help him, and made a long circuit around to the east of the mountain, where he went under the ground and dug a tunnel all the way until he came up under the left shoulder of the Elk where he was lying down. He dug right up to the Elk's heart. The Elk felt the earth move, and looking around he saw the Gopher and asked him what he wanted. The Gopher said his little ones were cold, and he only wanted a little hair to line their nest. The Elk said that was all right, so the Gopher pulled out a tuft of hair from directly over the Elk's heart. He dug a deep hole below the Elk, and then came back and told the boy. Nayé-nayesxû'ni, with his bow and arrows, firesticks, the flat stones, and the lightning bolt, entered the tunnel and went on until he came up under the Elk and could feel the throbbing of his heart where the Goplier had pulled out the hair. He fitted an arrow to his bow and shot the Elk through from one shoulder to the other. The Elk jumped to his feet and looked all around for the enemy.

With the bolt of lightning from his father the boy shot his first firestick to the east, where it made a black smoke. The Elk ran in that direction, but found no one there. In the same way the boy shot the second firestick to the south, where it raised a

blue smoke. The Elk went toward it, but slowly now, for his wound was taking his strength, and found nothing there. With the lightening bolt the boy shot the third firestick to the west, and it made a yellow smoke. The Elk went toward it, slowly now, for he was dying, but found nothing. Then the boy shot his last firestick to the north, and it raised a smoke of various colors. The Elk went after it, but found nothing, and came back with his lifeblood gushing from his mouth, to die where he had first lain down. In the meantime the boy had made preparation by piling the four flat rocks, one above another, over the hole in which he was hiding. The Elk saw them and knew his enemy must be there. With a last effort he lowered his horns and charged upon them—once, and the black rock was split in pieces ; twice, and the blue rock under it was shivered; again, and the yellow rock was broken. Only the particolored rock now remained to protect the boy, but as the Elk lowered his horns again he rolled over dead and the whole earth trembled.

The great dangerous Elk had smaller children. The boy did not kill these, but told them they must never grow larger, and from them have come the Elk that we know. He gave a part of the meat to the Gopher and brought the rest to his mother and brother and their friends at Taos. On command of his father, the Sun, he dried the skin of the Elk and made of it a coat with the hair inside and large enough to cover his whole body, all but his eyes, and laced it along the front. The blood he saved in an entrail and tucked it inside his coat, together with the two antlers of the Elk, one black and one red. Then he returned to his father to learn what more there was for him to do.

His father told him he must go next to destroy two great eagles that lived on Tsé-aí, "Standing-rock," a high, steep cliff westward from Taos, with two sharp peaks on the eastern and the western ends and a depression in the center between them. They had two young ones in the nest. From their perch upon the two high peaks they kept watch over all the country below, and whenever either saw an Indian traveling alone he would swoop down upon him, bear him up in his talons high above the cliff, and dash the life out of him on the rocks below, that the young eagles might have food.

Taking his coat of elk skin with the entrail full of blood and

the two horns, as directed by his father, the boy traveled on to Tsé-aí and stopped at the base of the eagle cliff. There he put on his elk-skin coat, with the hair inside, put the entrail and the two horns in his bosom, and laced it all tightly across in front. Then he lay down and waited. Soon the male eagle saw him and swooped down and tried to strike his talons into the boy's body. Three times he struck at him as the boy lay flat upon the ground, but the sharp claws only slipped off from the smooth elk skin. Then the boy turned over and the eagle fastened his claws into the lacing of the coat and carried the boy high up above the cliff and dashed him down near the nest. The blood from the entrail was spilled upon the rock and the eagle thought the boy was dead and told the young birds to go and eat.

As the young eagles came near to tear him in pieces the boy made a hissing sound,

and they were frightened and ran back to their father. Their father said, Then the old eagle flew away and left the young ones alone with the boy.

The young eagles came near again and the boy caught them and held them fast.

The young birds answered, They answered,

Náye-nayesxû'ni went and hid himself behind a shelf of the eastern peak. Very soon it began to hail and he got out his black elk horn and watched. Then he heard a man cry, and looking up he saw the male eagle coming with a Pueblo Indian in his talons. The old eagle came near and dashed the man down upon the rock and killed him, and then settled down upon the high peak to rest and flap his wings. The boy crept out front behind the rock and threw the elk horn so that it struck the eagle in the back of the head and killed him, and the eagle tumbled off the peak and fell clear down to the bottom of the cliff.

The boy went and hid behind the western peak. Soon it began to rain, and he saw the mother eagle coming with another

Indian in her claws. She threw the man down upon the rock and killed him, and then flew up upon the peak to rest. The boy struck her with his red elk horn, and she fell dead to the Bottom of the cliff. Then he came out from behind the rock and went over to the two young eagles in the nest. He did not kill them, but told them they must never grow any larger, and eagles have remained of that size ever since.

Now, the boy wanted to go back to his father, but the cliff was very steep and high and there was no way to climb down to the bottom. He walked round and round on the top of the rock, but found no way to get down. Toward evening, when it was getting dark, he saw a Bat flying below near the base of the rock and the Bat had a basket. The boy called to him once and again, and at last the Bat heard and asked him what he wanted. The boy said,

Everybody knows what eagle feathers are worth, so the Bat said he would do it, and he circled round and round the rock, because it was too steep to fly directly up, until lie reached the top.

He had the basket tied to his body with spider threads, and at first the boy was afraid to get in, but the Bat encouraged him and told him to get in and keep his eyes shut and he would be all right, but if he forgot and opened his eyes he would get dizzy and would fall out and be killed ; so the boy got into the basket, and the Bat began to go down by circling around the rock in the same way that he had come. He went very slowly, and once the boy got tired and wanted to open his eyes; but the Bat knew his thoughts and warned him again, and the boy kept his eyes shut, and at last they were down.

Náye-nayesxû'ni went over to the dead eagles and pulled out the small white feathers from their breasts and filled the Bat's basket with them. He stretched out the male eagle to face the east and its mate to face the west, and then brought the basket of feathers and gave them to the Bat. The Bat started home, but after going a little way he met a flock of tlóki'n birds, who took all his feathers from him[6].` He came back and told the boy what had happened and asked for some more feathers. The boy pulled some large feathers from the tails and wings of the two dead eagles and gave them to the Bat and told him not to go by the plain this time, but to fly home through the mountains, so no one would see him. The Bat took his advice, and this time he got home safe with the feathers. The boy went to Taos to see his mother and brother, and then returned to see what more his father, the Sun, had for him to do.

His father told him of still other dangerous things which must be exterminated before the people could go about their affairs in safety. It is a long story—the whole lifetime story of Náyenayesxû'ni—and space forbids the recital of all the adventurous details. He was sent next by his father to destroy two giant Bears that lived in a mountain west from Santa Clara and ravaged the whole country around. The Indian arrows only glanced from the bodies of the animals without harming them, but the boy's father showed him how to kill the he-bear by shooting him through the heart, which was in the palm of his right fore foot[7]. The she-bear was killed by a bolt of liglituing darted by the Sun himself. The bodies were burnt and the two cubs were commanded to grow no larger, and bears remain of that size ever since.

There way also a rock, known as Tse'-nanlki'ñ, "Rock-that-runs," which "lived" at Cieneguilla, east of the Rio Grande and southwest of Taos. The rock was alive and had a head and a mouth and used to roll after people and overtake and crush them and then swallow them. By the help of his father, the Sun, the boy shot an arrow through the rock and killed it. The rock is still there, lying on a level flat—a black rock as large as a house, with its "face" to the west, and with a spot on the north and on the south side where the arrow went through, and red streaks running down from them were the blood ran down to the ground.

Other monsters he destroyed, until at last his father told him there was only one more left. This was a great winged fish which dwelt in a lake somewhere in the west and lived upon human hearts. It used to fly above the trails and dart down upon its victims, crushing in their breast-bone to get at the heart. The Sun gave this last work to the Moon-boy, who had staid at home all this time to take care of his mother. The two brothers went on together until they came to the lake and waited for the great fish to fly out. When it came the Moon-boy struck it on the head and stunned it with a lightning bolt which the Sun had given him. Then as it lay motionless he shot four arrows into its heart. Cutting the body open, he lifted out the heart upon the four arrows and thrust it into the moon, and we see it there now.

When their work was done and the world was made safe, the boys said their last words to the people and started after the Sun along the trail to the west. Twelve men went with them. As they journeyed they came to twelve mountains, one after another, and inside of each mountain the brothers placed a man to wait forever until their return. They went on and on until they went into the western ocean, where they are living now in a house of turquois under the green water.