at any hand; all was as barren as the desert sands. Luckily each had
brought seeds of many kinds from the world below. These they began
planting, finishing the task in four days.

After the planting, First Man, First Woman, Wolf Chief, and Mountain Lion
Chief each made a speech advising the creation of a number of mountains
similar to the ones they had had in the lower world. This was agreeable to
all, and accordingly the work was begun. The handfuls of earth caught up
hurriedly from the tops of the mountains below as they were driven off by
the rising flood were taken to the cardinal points and deposited in the
same relative positions, an equal distance apart, as were the submerged
mountains from which the earth had been taken. First Si{~COMBINING BREVE~}snajini, the White
Mountain, was made in the east; then Tsotzilh, the Blue Mountain, in the
south; next Dokooeslit, the Yellow Mountain, in the west, and lastly
Depe{~COMBINING BREVE~}nsa, the Black Mountain, in the north. Having yet portions of each
handful of earth remaining, two more mountains, called Choili and
Tzilhnuhodihli, were made near the point of emergence in the middle of the
rectangle formed by the creation of the other four. To give each mountain
color, white shell, turquoise, abalone, and jet were used for those at the
cardinal points, while the middle two were colored with a mixture of all
these substances.

When the mountains were finished and the people looked about, it was
proposed that a sky should be made to cover the earth. "But," said one,
"what of the earth itself; is it not too small to furnish food for the
people who shall later come to live upon it?" None had thought of this,
but reflection, followed by a discussion, brought them all to the one
opinion--they would enlarge the earth and at the same time spread the sky
above. Accordingly, the chief who had spoken asked if anyone had a piece
of turquoise weighing as much as a man, and the skin of a large male deer
which had been smothered to death in pollen. First Man answered that he
had. A large white shell and the skin of a doe which had been smothered in
pollen were next requested. First Woman responded with them. The two skins
were then placed on the ground, side by side, with their heads toward the
east. Upon the one was put the turquoise and a piece of abalone shell; on
the other the white shell and a pearl. First Man and First Woman then
called for Kosdilhkih, Black Cloud, and Adilhkih,