by Alan Nafzger & Lilly Tabbytite (Comanche)
When Coyote was traveling through the plains, he came across two Buffalo bulls. One of the bulls was large, while the other was small.
"At long last, I see some meat," Coyote thought. "I'll go over there where the bulls are eating."
"Hey, Grass-eaters," he said, approaching Fat Bull as if he were a friend. "How do you think we should spend our day?"
"We don't know," Fat Bull admitted.
"Well, I've heard good things about you. I've heard you're a good runner. So I came to see if you could compete."
"No, we can't run at all," the bulls said.
"Oh well, let's race anyway." We'll see."
"We've heard you're the best runner." So we don't know if we can run that fast," Thin Bull explained.
"Well, let us run against him anyway," Fat Bull said. "There will be no shame in losing because he is a good runner."
"You know, I've heard you're a fast runner," Coyote said, "but you're always denying it like this." Let's see who the best is."
"Whither shall we run then?" Fat Bull wondered, eager to put Coyote to the test. He started pawing the ground a little.
"Over that way, where that hill is," Coyote said, pointing to a location where the sun was setting. He'd just left and knew there was a cliff at the top of the hill. Nobody could run over that cliff without getting killed. A person running a race with the sun in his eyes would not see the cliff and would fall off unless he knew it was there and could stop in time.
"How far shall we run?" "What is it?" inquired the thin bull.
"Over that hill and down the other side," Coyote explained. "Are you prepared? Okay, fine. " Let's go! "
Coyote charged ahead, followed by the bulls, straight into the blinding sun. "I'm very fast," Coyote said back over his shoulder. "You'll find out right now." But when they got to the bottom of the hill, the bulls were right behind Coyote, eager to beat him. The ground was trembling beneath their hooves.
"This is steeper than I thought," puffed Coyote as he slowed down.
The Bulls began to overtake him. "I have a lame leg," Coyote exclaimed. However, I'll catch you near the bottom on the other side. He was yelling into the dust as the two bulls passed him.
Coyote noticed the sun blinding the bulls and watched them flee the top of the hill.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha," Coyote laughed. I told those two knuckleheads I'd catch them on the other side. I spoke clearly, but I guess they didn't get it. " He trotted down to the bottom of the cliff and around it. "These people have no knowledge of their own country." They had no idea this cliff existed. Humph. Well, at least this fat one is edible. I'll give Raven that skinny one if he comes along. "
The Bulls had both died. Coyote smiled as he felt Fat Bull's ribs, but when he looked over at Thin Bull, he said, "You wasted your time running." You're too frail for a hunter like me to bother with. "
Just as he began butchering, he noticed a small, gray figure approaching. The Fox was one man. Coyote was known as "Brother." "Please come over here. I've got a job for you, and when it's done, we'll both have a nice meal. "I have a lot of meat."
One man was starving and asked Coyote what he should do.
"Did you notice that mountain?" I left my mountain lion's paw on a nearby rock. I'll need it to taste the soup. I can't taste the soup unless I have it. "
"That mountain is too far away for you, Old Man." One man objected after smelling Fat Bull.
"Go on, get going," Coyote said. "I have a lot of prep work to do here." I'll be butchering, making a paunch kettle, gathering wood for a fire, foraging for roots for soup, heating stones to boil the meat, and everything else. "
"I'll try the soup." "I don't need the paw of a mountain lion for this," exclaimed One Man.
"Go! Coyote yelled, "Get out of here!" He was becoming enraged. He desired the mountain lion's paw, which he was constantly forgetting and abandoning.
One man started toward the mountain, but he was afraid the coyotes would eat everything before he returned, so he only went a short distance. Then he returned. "I'm afraid I can't go that far, Old Man." "Look at how skinny my moccasins are." He showed where his foot was coming through by holding up his moccasin.
"You butcher, gather roots and wood, make the paunch kettle, and heat the stones." "I'll get you that paw."
One man observed a coyote vanish into the distance, heading toward the mountain. "That coyote is even more of a fool than I thought," he thought to himself. He's left me with all this meat. He'll need a few days to travel there and back. I'll get fat on this meat and be out of here before he returns. "
One man stuffed his face with the fat bull.
Coyote returned a few days later, and all the meat was gone. "And I called him brother," Coyote said, staring at the shattered bones where One Man had built his fire. "Well, when I catch that One Man guy, I'll call him something other than brother."
He followed the trail that One Man had left and soon came to a river. "He crossed the river here to get me off the trail," Coyote reasoned. He sniffed along the grass to ensure that one man had indeed crossed. On the other hand, he noticed a patch of rye grass. "That one man is stupid enough to be sleeping in that bunch of rye grass over there."
He slipped quietly into the water, swam across, put his nose back on the ground, and started looking for One Man. He immediately discovered the tracks. "Just as I predicted," Coyote thought to himself, "he headed for that rye grass."
One coyote approached one man, who was curled up asleep.
"Now I've got you, you thief," Coyote said quietly. "I used to call you my brother. Things will be more lively for you now. "
He sharpened one end of a stick and pushed it into the ground near the rye grass. He tied One Man's tail to the stick before pulling out his fire kit and lighting the grass. Flames erupted everywhere. "Fire! fire!" Coyote yelled, fanning the flames.
When one man jumped out of his bed and attempted to run, something broke. Coyote burst out laughing.
"What have you done to me, Old Man?" whimpered One Man as he contemplated what had occurred. His sides were completely burned, and his tail had vanished. "My lovely tail!" "Where can I find it?"
"The answer is right here on this stick." "You were in such a hurry that you left it behind," Coyote chuckled. "I punished you for stealing my meat while I went in search of that lion's paw." Now listen to me, you thief with a forked tongue. I'm heading south. You go north and stop taking things that are not yours. "
However, my tail "What about my tail, Old Man?"
One man took the tail and reattached it to the rump of another.
One man ventured north. He was terrified of going any other way.