Seneca Indian Myths: Tree Worm and his Mother-In-Law, Barkworm

HÁIENDONIS	He, woodmaker (A large tree worm)
YENOⁿGAA	She, Shingled Hair
YENOGEAUⁿ	Ear Enter (Barkworm)
GÁSYONDETHA	Meteor

HÁIENDONIS was walking along with all of his effects in a bundle. He didn't know where he came from or where he was going, though he knew he was going in a northerly direction. Wherever darkness overtook him, there he put his bundle on the ground, went inside of it and spent the night, if he didn't find a hollow tree to sleep in.

He traveled a long time. Then one morning he came to a precipice. It was very far to the bottom and he didn't know how he was to get down with so large a pack on his back.

At last he put the pack on the ground and going to basswood tree stripped it of bark, split the bark into strings, tied the strings together and made a long rope. Then fastening one end of the rope to a hemlock tree on the edge of the precipice, he let the other end down, took hold of the rope near the tree and lowered himself. Soon was at the end of the rope, and he clung there. The bundle on his back pulled the upper part of his body over till he was in nearly a horizontal position, face ward. He couldn't see where he was. He almost touched

the ground, but he didn't know it. He thought, "What can I do? I can't hang here long. Maybe I had better let go and fall. I can't get up and I can't go down."

He decided to let go of the rope and fall. As soon as he dropped the rope, the pack on his back touched the ground and his head rested on the pack, but he thought he was falling all the time. At last he said to himself, "I am tired of falling. I'll try and turn over a little so I can see where I am going."

He turned and found that he was on the ground. Saying, "Oh, how I've been delayed by not knowing that the ground was at the end of the rope!" he got up and went on.

When night came HÁIENDONIS slept in a hollow tree or in his bundle. He traveled many days. When he was tired of traveling he looked around for a good place to live in. At last he stopped where the trees were only a short distance apart. He built a cabin, took his pack inside and arranged his blankets, pouches, ladles, and bark bowls. The next morning he went out to hunt for food. He saw a deer, pointed at it, and the deer fell dead. Every kind of game was under his control, when he went home

he didn't carry the game. He stood near the house, and said, "Let the game I have killed be piled up here at the door. Let it be dressed and hung up to dry." In the Morning the meat was drying and a pile of skins lay at the door.

One day, when HÁIENDONIS was hunting, he saw a GÁSYONDETHA and pointing his finger at him killed him' for he wanted the skin for a pouch. Going farther he

killed a panther and then a fox. "Now," thought he, "I'll have three new pouches." The next morning the three skins were hanging on the side of the cabin. "What will I do with these pouches?" thought HÁIENDONIS, then, taking down the skin of GÁSYONDETHA he said to it, "Stand here, alive!" That instant GÁSYONDETHA stood alive before him.

HÁIENDONIS brought the three skin pouches to life and had them stand inside the house.

Soon it was known that a man, who was full of witchcraft, had settled down in the neighborhood. That if he

wanted to kill an animal or a man he had only to point a finger at them. People were afraid of him.

Not far from HÁIENDONIS' house lived a woman and her three daughters. The woman was full of witchcraft and had come there to settle down because no one wanted to live near her.

Each woman had a pounder. Soon the corn was flour and the mother made it into bread. Then she filled a basket and said to the eldest daughter, "I want you to go to HÁIENDONIS and see if he will marry you."

HÁIENDONIS saw a girl coming with a basket on her back, and he thought, "There is a woman coming, I think she is coming to see me. I wonder if she wants to marry me?" Then he said to his pouches, "GÁSYONDETHA, go over there and stand by the tree! You, Panther, go and stand a little nearer this way; and you, Fox, stand at the door."

When the girl was near, HÁIENDONIS began to smoke his pipe. She walked along with her head down and did not see GÁSYONDETHA till she was right at his side. Then, looking up, and seeing such a fierce person, she turned and ran. As she ran, the bread fell out of the basket and when she reached home she had lost it all.

The girls pounded corn into flour and Barkworm made the flour into bread. Then she said to her second daughter, "Take the basket and go to HÁIENDONIS, your sister is a coward."

HÁIENDONIS saw the girl coming, with a basket on her back, and said, "Here comes another woman, she will soon be spilling her bread."

her head down till she reached GÁSYONDETHA, then, looking up and seeing him, she said, "I'm not afraid of you!" and went on. She passed the panther and came to the door of the cabin. In the doorway stood a man switching something against the door. The girl was frightened; she screamed, turned around, and began to run. As she ran she spilled the bread out of her basket.

After a few days Barkworm said to her daughters, "We will try again." She made bread, filled a basket with it, and said to her youngest daughter, YENOⁿGAA, "You must go this time. Don't notice anything or be afraid of anything. Go straight into the house."

When HÁIENDONIS saw the girl coming, he said, "It is strange how little those women care for bread. There is another one coming and when she gets near she will turn and run, spilling her bread as she goes."

When the girl came to where GÁSYONDETHA stood she looked at him, then she gave him a blow, and he fell to the ground, and was nothing but a skin pouch. She treated Panther in the same way. When she came to the door, Fox stood there, the wind was switching his tail against the door, this had frightened the second sister, but YENOⁿGAA was not afraid. She struck Fox and down he went, nothing but a skin pouch.

When HÁIENDONIS saw the girl knocking down his guards, he thought, "She will come in! I will get my Pipe and pretend to be an old man."

No answer. She asked again, then an old man sitting there, said, "It seems to me that I hear a woman speaking."

The old man looked up and said, "I don't think he is at home. I don't think he will be here for ten days."

At the end of ten days, the girl set out again. When l HÁIENDONIS saw her coming, he said, "Now I will be a little boy."

This time the girl paid no attention to the pouches. She went straight to the door and stood there.

"He went out a little while ago," said the boy. "He has gone to the other side of the world."

At the end of ten days, HÁIENDONIS saw the girl coming and he thought, "I'll be invisible this time."

The girl went into the house and put her basket down, Seeing nobody she said, "I will wait a while," and she sat down on HÁIENDONIS' couch.

HÁIENDONIS had cleaned the intestines of the game he had killed, filled them with blood and meat, cooked them and hung them up over his couch, some of these intestines clung to the girl. Barkworm took them, and said, "Thank you, my daughter. This is good meat. You must go again to-morrow."

The next morning the girl started. When HÁIENDONIS saw her coming, he laughed, and said, "I think this time all the intestines will go."

She found him in his real form. He asked, "What were you doing with the basket you left here yesterday?"

"It was full of marriage bread. My mother sent me to stay with you," said the girl.

HÁIENDONIS did not drive her away. He ate of the marriage bread and that made her his wife.

Old Barkworm and her two elder daughters were evil-minded, poisonous persons. Barkworm now began to give her youngest daughter as much power as possible and to

instruct her how to control HÁIENDONIS. "You must make him come and live with us," said she.

When YENOⁿGAA came back, HÁIENDONIS looked at her and right away he knew she was going to try to control him.

Each time she tried, she failed. But she went often to her mother to get more power and witchcraft. HÁIENDONIS wondered why she acted this way. At last he said to himself, "I will destroy all of her people." The next time she started for her mother's, he followed, circled around, got ahead of her and reached the old woman's house first.

He sprang into the house, and said to old Barkworm, "I am here to fight with you."

They were fighting when YENOⁿGAA came. She stood at one side powerless to help either her husband or her mother and sisters.

HÁIENDONIS killed Barkworm and two of her daughters, then he said to his wife, "Go off a little way."

She went, and he set fire to the house. It blazed up high, then burned to the ground. When the fire died down, something among the coals popped; a horned owl flew to the trees, and hooted; a second pop and a screech owl called out; at the third pop a common owl flew to the top of a tree.

The woman stood still, looking in one direction; she was dazed. He pulled her along by the arm, and said, "Come home," then she started.

The minute the old woman was killed, people, even at the edge of the world, knew it, and a shout of joy was then that sounded all over the world.

HÁIENDONIS put saliva on his hands, rubbed his wife's head and pulled her hair, which till then had been short, and right away it became long and beautiful. Now they lived in HÁIENDONIS' house and were happy.

TREE WORM AND HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW, BARKWORM