Reading Notes: American Indian Lagoo, the story-teller, Part A
Bibliography: This story is part of the American Indian Fairy Tales unit. Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921).
There never was anyone who was so wise and knowing as Lagoo, the wise old man. No other Indian is known to exist who has seen or heard more than Lagoo. He was so wise he knew the secrets of the woods and fields and understood the language of birds and beasts. His whole life he had lived outdoors, he would wonder deep in the forest where the deer would hide. He also would skim the waters of the lake in his birch-bark canoe. He knew much more than that what he solely knew on his own. He knew the stories that his grandfather would tell him that he learned from his grandfather, and so on. His grandfather would tell him the fairy tales and the wonder stories and he knew every word. These stories have been passed down from generation to generation since when the world was young, strange, and there was magic in nearly everything.
Lagoo was known to be the children's favorite. No one knew where to find the beautiful. colored shells which he would put on a string to make necklaces that the little girls liked so much. No one knew better where to find the grasses they would nimbly weave together into baskets. He would make bows from the ash-tree that would bend far back without breaking and he would make strong straight arrows from sturdy oak.
The reason the children loved Lagoo so much was his stories that won their hearts over. Some stories would explain why things are the way they are. Where did the robin get his red breast? How did fire find its way into the woods, so that an Indian can get it out gain by rubbing two sticks together? why was Coyote, the prairie wolf, so much cleverer than the other animals, and why was he always looking behind him when he ran? Nobody knew but old Lagoo who could tell you the reasons.
Winter was the time for storytelling. when the snow lays deep on the ground, the Northwind comes howling from his home in the Land of Ice, and the cold moonshine from the frosty sky, in this time the Indians would gather in the wigwam. It was then Lagoo would sit by the fire of blazing logs, and the young children would gather around him.
"Whoo, Whoo!" wailed the North Wind. The sparks leaped up and Lagoo set another log into the fire.
"Whoo, whoo!" what a mischievous fellow was the North Wind. One could almost see him -his hair flowing all hung with icicles. If the wigwam were not strong he would blow it down, and if the fire were not so bright he would put it out. The wigwam was made on purpose for just such a time as this, and the forest nearby had logs to last for an eternity. So the North Wind could only gnash his teeth, and say "Whoo, whoo!"
A little girl, timider than the rest, drew nearer and put her hand on the old man's arm. "O, Lagoo." she would say softly, "just listen! Do you think he can hurt us?"
"Have no fear," Lagoo would tell the children. "The North Wind can do no harm to anyone who is brave and cheerful. He blusters and makes a lot of noise, but at heart, he is a big coward, and the fire will soon scare him away. Suppose I tell you a story about it."
and the Story Lagoo told we shall now tell you, the story of how Shin-gebis fooled the Northwind.
There never was anyone who was so wise and knowing as Lagoo, the wise old man. No other Indian is known to exist who has seen or heard more than Lagoo. He was so wise he knew the secrets of the woods and fields and understood the language of birds and beasts. His whole life he had lived outdoors, he would wonder deep in the forest where the deer would hide. He also would skim the waters of the lake in his birch-bark canoe. He knew much more than that what he solely knew on his own. He knew the stories that his grandfather would tell him that he learned from his grandfather, and so on. His grandfather would tell him the fairy tales and the wonder stories and he knew every word. These stories have been passed down from generation to generation since when the world was young, strange, and there was magic in nearly everything.
Lagoo was known to be the children's favorite. No one knew where to find the beautiful. colored shells which he would put on a string to make necklaces that the little girls liked so much. No one knew better where to find the grasses they would nimbly weave together into baskets. He would make bows from the ash-tree that would bend far back without breaking and he would make strong straight arrows from sturdy oak.
The reason the children loved Lagoo so much was his stories that won their hearts over. Some stories would explain why things are the way they are. Where did the robin get his red breast? How did fire find its way into the woods, so that an Indian can get it out gain by rubbing two sticks together? why was Coyote, the prairie wolf, so much cleverer than the other animals, and why was he always looking behind him when he ran? Nobody knew but old Lagoo who could tell you the reasons.
Winter was the time for storytelling. when the snow lays deep on the ground, the Northwind comes howling from his home in the Land of Ice, and the cold moonshine from the frosty sky, in this time the Indians would gather in the wigwam. It was then Lagoo would sit by the fire of blazing logs, and the young children would gather around him.
"Whoo, Whoo!" wailed the North Wind. The sparks leaped up and Lagoo set another log into the fire.
"Whoo, whoo!" what a mischievous fellow was the North Wind. One could almost see him -his hair flowing all hung with icicles. If the wigwam were not strong he would blow it down, and if the fire were not so bright he would put it out. The wigwam was made on purpose for just such a time as this, and the forest nearby had logs to last for an eternity. So the North Wind could only gnash his teeth, and say "Whoo, whoo!"
A little girl, timider than the rest, drew nearer and put her hand on the old man's arm. "O, Lagoo." she would say softly, "just listen! Do you think he can hurt us?"
"Have no fear," Lagoo would tell the children. "The North Wind can do no harm to anyone who is brave and cheerful. He blusters and makes a lot of noise, but at heart, he is a big coward, and the fire will soon scare him away. Suppose I tell you a story about it."
and the Story Lagoo told we shall now tell you, the story of how Shin-gebis fooled the Northwind.
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| Lagoo, the Story-Teller |
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