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MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE

BY
JAMES MOONEY

EXTRACT FROM THE NINETEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

WASHINGTON
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1902

MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE

BY

JAMES MOONEY

Page
I—Introduction 11
II—Historical sketch of the Cherokee 14
- The traditionary period 14
- The period of Spanish exploration—1540–? 23
- The Colonial and Revolutionary period—1654–1784 29
- Relations with the United States 61
  - From the first treaty to the Removal—1785–1838 61
  - The Removal—1838–1839 130
  - The Arkansas band—1817–1838 135
  - The Texas band—1817–1900 143
  - The Cherokee Nation of the West—1840–1900 146
  - The East Cherokee—1838–1900 157
III—Notes to the historical sketch 182
IV—Stories and story-tellers 229
V—The myths 239
- Cosmogonic myths 239
  - 1. How the world was made 239
  - 2. The first fire 240
  - 3. Kana′tĭ and Selu: Origin of corn and game 242
  - 4. Origin of disease and medicine 250
  - 5. The Daughter of the Sun: Origin of death 252
  - 6. How they brought back the Tobacco 254
  - 7. The journey to the sunrise 255
  - 8. The Moon and the Thunders 256
  - 9. What the Stars are like 257
  - 10. Origin of the Pleiades and the Pine 258
  - 11. The milky way

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class="tocPageNum">259

12. Origin of strawberries 259

13. The Great Yellow-jacket: Origin of fish and frogs 260

14. The Deluge 261

Quadruped myths 261

15. The four-footed tribes 261
16. The Rabbit goes duck hunting 266
17. How the Rabbit stole the Otter’s coat 267
18. Why the Possum’s tail is bare 269
19. How the Wildcat caught the turkeys 269
20. How the Terrapin beat the Rabbit 270
21. The Rabbit and the tar wolf 271
22. The Rabbit and the Possum after a wife 273
23. The Rabbit dines the Bear 273
24. The Rabbit escapes from the wolves 274
25. Flint visits the Rabbit 274
26. How the Deer got his horns 275
27. Why the Deer’s teeth are blunt 276
28. What became of the Rabbit 277
29. Why the Mink smells 277
30. Why the Mole lives under ground 277
31. The Terrapin’s escape from the wolves 278
32. Origin of the Groundhog dance: The Groundhog’s head 279
33. The migration of the animals 280
34. The Wolf’s revenge: The Wolf and the Dog 280

Bird myths 280

35. The bird tribes 280
36. The ball game of the birds and animals 286
37. How the Turkey got his beard 287
38. Why the Turkey gobbles 288
39. How the Kingfisher got his bill 288
40. How the Partridge got his whistle 289
41. How the Redbird got his color 289
42. The Pheasant beating corn: The Pheasant dance 290
43. The race between the Crane and the Humming-bird 290
44.

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href="@public@vhost@g@gutenberg@html@files@45634@[email protected]#s44" class="pginternal" tag="{http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml}a">The Owl gets married 291

45. The Huhu gets married 292

46. Why the Buzzard’s head is bare 293

47. The Eagle’s revenge 293

48. The Hunter and the Buzzard 294

Snake, fish, and insect myths 294

49. The snake tribe 294
50. The Uktena and the Ulûñsû′tĭ 297
51. Âgan-Uni′tsi’s search for the Uktena 298
52. The Red Man and the Uktena 300
53. The Hunter and the Uksu′hĭ 301
54. The Ustû′tlĭ 302
55. The Uwʻtsûñ′ta 303
56. The Snake Boy 304
57. The Snake Man 304
58. The Rattlesnake’s vengeance 305
59. The smaller reptiles, fishes, and insects 306
60. Why the Bullfrog’s head is striped 310
61. The Bullfrog lover 310
62. The Katydid’s warning 311

Wonder stories 311

63. Ûñtsaiyĭ′, the Gambler 311
64. The nest of the Tlă′nuwa 315
65. The Hunter and the Tlă′nuwa 316
66. Uʻtlûñ′ta, the Spear-finger 316
67. Nûñ′yunu′wĭ, the stone man 319
68. The Hunter in the Dăkwă′ 320
69. Atagâ′hĭ, the enchanted lake 321
70. The Bride from the south 322
71. The Ice Man 322
72. The Hunter and Selu 323
73. The underground panthers 324
74. The Tsundige′wĭ 325
75. Origin of the Bear: The Bear songs 325
76. The Bear Man 327
77.

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tag="{http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml}a">The Great Leech of Tlanusi′yĭ 329

78. The Nûñnĕ′hĭ and other spirit folk 330

79. The removed townhouses 335

80. The spirit defenders of Nĭkwăsĭ′ 336

81. Tsulʻkălû′ the slant-eyed giant 337

82. Kana′sta, the lost settlement 341

83. Tsuwe′năhĭ, a legend of Pilot knob 343

84. The man who married the Thunder’s sister 345

85. The haunted whirlpool 347

86. Yahula 347

87. The water cannibals 349

Historical traditions 350

88. First contact with whites 350
89. The Iroquois war 351
90. Hiadeoni, the Seneca 356
91. The two Mohawks 357
92. Escape of the Seneca boys 359
93. The unseen helpers 359
94. Hatciñondoñ’s escape from the Cherokee 362
95. Hemp-carrier 364
96. The Seneca peacemakers 365
97. Origin of the Yontoñwisas dance 365
98. Gaʼna’s adventures among the Cherokee. 367
99. The Shawano wars 370
100. The raid on Tĭkwali′tsĭ 374
101. The last Shawano invasion 374
102. The false warriors of Chilhowee 375
103. Cowee town 377
104. The eastern tribes 378
105. The southern and western tribes 382
106. The giants from the west 391
107. The lost Cherokee 391
108. The massacre of the Ani′-Kuta′nĭ 392
109. The war medicine 393
110. Incidents of personal heroism 394
111.

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tag="{http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml}a">The mounds and the constant fire: The old sacred things 395

Miscellaneous myths and legends 397

112. The ignorant housekeeper 397
113. The man in the stump 397
114. Two lazy hunters 397
115. The two old men 399
116. The star feathers 399
117. The Mother Bear’s song 400
118. Baby song, to please the children. 401
119. When babies are born: The Wren and the Cricket 401
120. The Raven Mocker 401
121. Herbert’s spring 403
122. Local legends of North Carolina. 404
123. Local legends of South Carolina 411
124. Local legends of Tennessee 412
125. Local legends of Georgia 415
126. Plant lore 420

VI—Notes and parallels 428

VII—Glossary 506

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page Plate I. In the Cherokee mountains 11 II. Map: The Cherokee and their neighbors. 14 III. Map: The old Cherokee country 23 IV. Sequoya (Sikwâyĭ) 108 V. The Cherokee alphabet 112 VI. Tahchee (Tătsĭ) or Dutch 140 VII. Spring-frog or Tooantuh (Du′stu′) 142 VIII. John Ross (Gu′wisguwĭ′) 150 IX. Colonel W. H. Thomas (Wil-Usdi′) 160 X. Chief N. J. Smith (Tsalădihĭ′) 178 XI. Swimmer (Aʻyûñ′inĭ) 228 XII.

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tag="{http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml}a">John Ax (Itagû′nûhĭ) 238 XIII. Tagwădihĭ′ 256 XIV. Ayâsta 272 XV. Sawănu′gĭ, a Cherokee ball player 284 XVI. Nĭkwăsĭ′ mound at Franklin, North Carolina 337 XVII. Annie Ax (Sadayĭ) 358 XVIII. Walinĭ′, a Cherokee woman 378 XIX. On Oconaluftee river 405 XX. Petroglyphs at Track-rock gap, Georgia 418 Figure 1.
Feather wand of Eagle dance
282 2. Ancient Iroquois wampum belts 354

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY NINETEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. I

PHOTOGRAPH BY AUTHOR, 1888

IN THE CHEROKEE MOUNTAINS

CONTENTS

ILLUSTRATIONS