let the animals go away from them, leaving the
hunters no game to kill? The little children were crying for food, and
the warriors had grown thin and sad during this summer. And now the
fever had come, and in the lodges many sick were lying.

Wesakchak felt that he must do something for his people, so he asked
the Great Spirit to show him where the animals lived, so that he might
tell his hunters and save the lives of all in the tribe. Then
Wesakchak took his canoe and carried it until he came to the Great
River. Getting in, he paddled for many days and many nights. He
watched all the time, to see if any game came near the banks, but he
saw no sign of any.

At last, after he had gone many hundreds of miles, he felt so tired
that he knew he must rest. He drew his canoe up to the side of the
river and made a lodge from the branches of trees. Here he slept
during the night, and when morning came, he arose quite rested. Before
he had gone to sleep that night he had noticed that the clouds hung
low, and he had wondered if there would be snow in the morning. Now,
when he came forth from his lodge, he saw that all the land was white.
During the night a heavy fall of soft snow had come, and all the trees
and the prairie were covered with it.

Wesakchak was greatly pleased, for this was just what he had hoped for.
Now he would be able to see the marks of the animals and trace them to
their homes. Going down to the river, he was delighted to find the
trail of deer, who had been down for a drink. There were also the
marks of the other animals, and now Wesakchak made up his mind to
follow these trails and find where the animals were living. He set
out, and tramped for many miles. The sun arose and shone on the snow,
making everything a dazzling white. But Wesakchak did not mind, and
tramped on. At length he knew he was near the place where the animals
were living. He took a good look at the trees, so that he could tell
the hunters where to find them. Then he turned to hurry back, for he
wished to let them know as soon as possible. He tramped on again for a
long time, but he did not seem to be getting any nearer to the river.
He stopped and looked around. Everything was glistening white, and
nowhere could he see a river or a tree. He wondered if he were lost
and what he would do, for he knew that if the sick people did not get
food soon, they would die. He turned in another direction and
travelled for some t