Legends of Our Nation

Continued from last week.

The Story of Niagara

As far back as people can remember, the waters of the Niagara have been falling into the deep gorge, its thundering stream swallowing up everything it manages to catch hold of. And yet the Indians know Niagara – who hear the rumble of the waterfall on their long voyages, by the fire, as well as in their sleep – are not frightened of the Niagara. That is so because they know this story.

There once lived a beautiful maiden in an Indian camp. Many good, brave, and daring young men tried to woo her, but her parents, in the end, gave her to a bad-tempered but wealthy old man, who tormented her and beat her. She did not even get enough to eat but had to work from sunrise to sunset, while the greedy old man only piled up and jealously guarded his wampum.

No wonder, then, that the girl wept wherever she went. Several times she tried to run away, but always the old man caught her again, and she then even worse off than she had been before.

I’d rather be dead than suffer like this any longer, she said to herself one day. It was evening, and the hunters were just returning home in their canoes. The girl watched them go ashore, and when she saw that there was no longer anyone about, she quickly jumped into one of the boats. The current carried her straight to the waterfall, where suddenly the water dropped away as it tumbled down into the gorge.

The canoe fell like a stone, and the girl closed her eyes, expecting her end. But to her great astonishment the canoe, instead of hurtling down to hit the surface with a terrible crash, came to rest lightly, as if caught by some giant hand.

The girl found herself in a huge cavern, its entrance shut off by the waters of the great waterfall.

“Paddle towards me, paddle towards me,” she heard a kind voice calling her, and she at once lost her fear. Looking in the direction of the voice she saw a man so huge that his little finger was as long as her canoe.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“I am Hinun, the Good Giant, and I wish to help you. Niagara told me you were coming. You can live here in my home until the selfish old man dies.”

The girl was only too happy to stay in the giant’s cave, and she indeed lacked nothing there. Hinun told her about everything that happened in the camp, telling her how the old man looked for her in vain.

One day, however, he returned home with a frown on his kind face.

“Your husband is a very sick and greedy man,” he told her, “To get as much wampum as he can, he is buying firewater from the pale-faces and selling it dearly to the Indians.

He knos only too well how harmful firewater is to the red men, but he cared nothing for that, all he is interested in is amassing more and more riches.”

“What will you do about it, Hinun?”

“I must measure my strength against his,” the giant replied, and he was gone before she could put any more questions to him.

Continued next week.