, doing all the good we
can; but if either is ever in need of help let him call upon the other
and he will come instantly to his aid!"

The other agreed, and they set out in opposite directions. Not long
after, the Rabbit heard a loud groaning and crying as of some person in
great pain. When he reached the spot, he found a man with his body
wedged tightly in the forks of a tree, which the wind swayed to and fro.
He could not by any means get away, and was in great misery.

"I will take your place, brother!" exclaimed the generous young man,
upon which the tree immediately parted, and the tree-bound was free.
Mashtinna took his place and the tree closed upon him like a vise and
pinched him severely.

The pain was worse than he had supposed, but he bore it as long as he
could without crying out. Sweat beaded his forehead and his veins
swelled to bursting; at last he could endure it no longer, and called
loudly upon his comrade to help him. At once the young man appeared and
struck the tree so that it parted and Mashtinna was free.

He kept on his journey until he spied a small wigwam quite by itself on
the edge of a wood. Lifting the door-flap, he saw no one but an old
blind man, who greeted him thankfully.

"Ho, my grandson! you see me, I am old and poor. All the day I see no
one. When I wish to drink, this raw-hide lariat leads me to the stream
near by. When I need dry sticks for my fire, I follow this other rope
and feel my way among the trees. I have food enough, for these bags are
packed with dried meat for my use. But alas, my grandson, I am all
alone here, and I am blind!"

"Take my eyes, grandfather!" at once exclaimed the kind-hearted young
man. "You shall go where you will, and I will remain here in your
place."

"Ho, ho, my grandson, you are very good!" replied the old man, and he
gladly took the eyes of the Rabbit and went out into the world. The
youth stayed behind, and as he was hungry, he ate of the dried meat in
the bags.

This made him very thirsty, so he took hold of the raw-hide rope and
followed it to the stream; but as he stooped to the brink, the rope
broke and Mashtinna fell in.

The water was cold and the bank slippery, but after a hard struggle he
got out again and made his way back to the teepee, dripping wet and very
miserable. Wishing to make a fire and dry his clothes, he seized the
other rope and went to the wood for sticks.

However, when he began to gather the sticks he lost th