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VOL. 10.
JANUARY 24, 1908.
NO. 31
The Bird That Wanted to be
PreLLy.
BY
WALTER E. HAIGHT
As you all have heard, the creatures
and animals talked and lived together
in the early days. There came a time
when they all had to enjoy a different
life and each kind to live in different
places. It seems as( though there was
some one in the village who had the
power of telling the creatures and ani
mals of how and where each tribe should
live.
The first little animal that spoke up'
was the rabbit; he said he wanted to be
a little elk. They told him that if he
could go through the brush, tearing and
breaking the limbs and branches as he
went, he could be what he asked to be.
So he leaped, but there was no noise.
The captain said, "You shall be ajrab
bit instead because you didn't make any
noise when you disappeared."" So to this
day when you see him jump you can't
hear him.
Now the bird that wanted to be pretty
was the crow. He was always talking
nhout how pretty he wanted to be. Some
of the birds were being painted. He
saw how pretty the woodpecker's head
was painted and how pretty the hum
ming bird looked after he was. painted.
He was so anxious regarding how he
should be painted that he talked contin
ually to the painters of how he should
be decorated with paint. All the birds
were not to be painted only the small
birds. Now if the crow hadn't talked
so much of being painted he
would have been a prettier bird than he
is now.
Finally the painters in a chorus said
"We are ready for you," and they told
him to close his eyes and he did as he
was told. He did not know they were
going to play a joke on him. Now the
painters started in on him. They told
him how pretty they were going to
paint him and he promised that he would
not open his eyes.
Four painters started to paint him
from his beak and they even painted the
bottoms of his feet. When they were
through with him they told him not to
open his eyes until he had lit on some
thing after he had flown a little ways..
He lit upon a rock and opened his eyes.
He was surprised to find himself paint
ed black from head, to foot.' The only
word he said was "caw" after he looked
upon himpelf and to this day you can
hear him saying, "caw, caw," which means
black. 1