Buffalo Field Campaign Yellowstone Bison Update from the Field June 17, 2010 ------------------------------ ------------------------------ * Update from the Field * THEY'RE HERE! Wild Bison 2011 Calendars! * Last Words * Kill Tally * Useful Links ------------------------------ * Update from the Field It's been wet, cool and relatively quiet in the land of the last wild buffalo. Since we last wrote, buffalo have been given a much-needed reprieve from the relentless hazing they suffered for nearly two months straight. The majority of wild buffalo are now inside Yellowstone's boundaries, and so is Buffalo Field Campaign. Our summer outreach season began this week with dedicated volunteers braving the snow and rain to talk to park visitors about how the Park, the Montana Department of Livestock and collaborating agencies hurt America's last wild bison population. BFC is looking for summer volunteers to help with our summer outreach program, so if you've ever wanted to spend time inside Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and help tell the buffalo's story, please contact us at [email protected] If you can't make it to Yellowstone country but still want to help spread the word in your community, please contact us about receiving multiple copies of this years' newsletter, which you can hand out to friends, place in coffee shops, and otherwise distribute. Every year there is at least one new volunteer that was drawn to BFC because they picked up a newsletter - so it really does make a difference. The newsletter will be mailed out shortly, so if you have moved or changed addresses recently, or if you'd like to be added to our mailing list, please send your updated contact info to [email protected] so you're sure to get yours and more if you can spread them around your community! While visitors to Yellowstone National Park are enjoying the company of wild buffalo and other unparalleled splendors Yellowstone country has to offer, the Park itself is planning to further cave to livestock interests and jeopardize the wild integrity of buffalo. Yellowstone has released an enormous Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) that unfortunately could open the way for the Park to shoot wild bison with a livestock brucellosis vaccine. Vaccinating wild buffalo is an ill-conceived and wasteful plan which continues to jeopardize the wild integrity of bison by mismanaging them like livestock. The plan puts wild buffalo in unacceptable harm and must not be allowed. BFC has been carefully reading through the DEIS, and we will soon give your our informed feedback to help you formulate your own comments, which are being accepted through July 26, 2010. If you don't want to wait, you can submit your comments via the Park Service's web form http://parkplanning.nps.gov/commentForm.cfm?parkID=111&projectID=10736&documentId=34079. You can find BFC's general information about why vaccinating wild buffalo is wrong here: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/science/vaccinationprogram.html. You can always email us at [email protected] with questions you may have. Otherwise, stay tuned for a Special Alert from Buffalo Field Campaign coming soon to your inbox! Thank you for being with us for the buffalo! ROAM FREE! ------------------------------ * THEY'RE HERE! Wild Bison 2011 Calendars! Order yours today! https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/shop/item.jsp?storefront_KEY=554&t=&store_item_KEY=2899 After many long months of soliciting photos, basking in the glory if the images you have shared with us, and having the difficult job of choosing the finalists for this years' calendar, it has happened: your encouragement and photo submissions helped BFC create the first-ever calendar dedicated to the majesty of the wild buffalo of Yellowstone! Wild Bison 2011 calendars are already going very fast, so please get yours today: https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/shop/item.jsp?storefront_KEY=554&t=&store_item_KEY=2899 This unique calendar was created, in part, by you. All of the photos in the calendar were taken by Buffalo Field Campaign supporters and volunteers. The calendar is decorated with incredible artwork, poetry, quotes, interesting facts about buffalo, and powerful, endearing images that are sure to escalate your current love-affair with buffalo, or enchant people meeting them for the first time. Wild Bison 2011 is a total celebration of North America's largest land mammal. Buffalo Field Campaign would like to thank each and every one of you who sent us photos and gave us the inspiration to do this project. It has been an incredible journey to see the buffalo through your eyes, through your images. And it has been a blessedly positive project, this celebration of wild buffalo. Too often the dark images of harm caused to the buffalo entraps us in our work to protect them, so we took great pleasure in the many hours looking through your positive photos of our shaggy friends in all their aspects. So far it has been more successful than we could have imagined, and we fully intend to carry on every year. So, get the Wild Bison 2011 calendars today for yourself, friends and family. If you know of businesses that might have interest in selling them, please contact Mike at [email protected] Lastly, if you're planning trips to Yellowstone this year, think about taking high-resolution, large-megapixel photos that you can submit for next year's calendar. If you already have some you'd like to submit for the next calendar, please send them to Stephany at [email protected] We are working on creating an easy web-based repository where you can upload photos throughout the year, so just keep this in mind if you have or will be visiting Yellowstone and the last wild buffalo. BFC's heartfelt and deepest thanks to you all for making Wild Bison 2011 Calendars a wish come true. Thanks go to Russ Fishback for igniting the spark to get this project going! Special thanks to Roger and Jim at Art & Images Resources in Missoula, Montana, for their design expertise, love for the buffalo, and for taking on the calendar's publication. Many thanks also to BFC's Mike Mease and Dan Brister for their endless dedication to the buffalo and for taking the chance on producing Wild Bison 2011!! ------------------------------ * Last Words Staying Power Many wish us gone; But we go on - we go on- Love is the answer. ~ By Iris, buffalo lover and BFC supporter. Do you have submissions for Last Words? Send them to [email protected] Thank you all for the poems, songs and stories you have been sending; you'll see them here! ------------------------------ * Kill Tally AMERICAN BUFFALO ELIMINATED from the last wild population in the U.S. 2009-2010 Total: 6 2009-2010 Slaughter: 0 2009-2010 Hunt: 4 2009-2010 Quarantine: 0 2009-2010 Shot by Agents: 2* 2009-2010 Highway Mortality: 0 *Two bulls that were drugged by APHIS on 5/4/10 were shot by DOL later that evening. 2008-2009 Total: 22 2007-2008 Total: 1,631 Total Since 2000: 3,708* *includes lethal government action, quarantine, hunts, highway mortality ----------------------------- Media & Outreach Buffalo Field Campaign P.O. Box 957 West Yellowstone, MT 59758 406-646-0070 [email protected] http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org BFC is the only group working in the field every day in defense of the last wild buffalo population in the U.S. KEEP BFC ON THE FRONTLINES WITH A TAX DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTION TODAY https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=3647 Join Buffalo Field Campaign -- It's Free! http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/signUp.jsp?key=3378 Tell-a-Friend: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/tellafriend.jsp?tell_a_friend_KEY=3835 Take Action! http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=26453 Unsubscribe http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/7926/p/salsa/supporter/unsubscribe/public/?unsubscribe_page_KEY=42 --

Creation Story - Potawatomi Anishnabe found himself alone on earth. The Creator told him to give everything a name, and he did this, accompanied by a wolf. He discovered that only he, among the many species, was alone, without a mate, and he was lonely. He traveled to the Great Lakes and while searching, heard a beautiful song coming across the water. The woman's voice was singing that she was making a home for him. He fell in love with the voice and the song. In the days that followed, he learned how to cross the water and finally came to a lodge facing west. There lived a beautiful woman and her father, the Firekeeper. This was the first union - Anishabe and the Firekeeper's Daughter. It determined the roles of men and women in marriage. They had four sons, who when they were grown traveled to the four directions of the earth. The son who traveled north had a hard journey, but learned that the melting snow cleansed Mother Earth. Because of the snow, the color for North is white. This son married the daughter of the Spirit of the North and was given sweet grass, the first gift of Mother Earth. It is kept in a braid like a mother's hair. The second son traveled east, into the yellow of the rising sun. He learned that fire is the essence of life and gained in knowledge of the Creator. He married the daughter of the Spirit of the East, and was given tobacco to use in prayer, to communicate with the Creator. The third son went south, which is the woman's direction from which comes seeds and other things that give life. Red, the color of life's blood, is the color for south. He married the Spirit of the South's daughter and was given the gift of cedar, which is used to cleanse and purify the home and prepare for food. The fourth son went West, toward the mountains. Marrying the Spirit of the West's daughter, he was given sage and learned that the setting sun represents the circle of life and its cycle. The color for West is black, for the dark time, and the sage, a strong purifier, is to keep illness away. Smoke from the cedar and sage is fanned upward with an eagle feather because the eagle once saved the Indian people when the Creator would have destroyed them. The eagle told the Creator there were faithful people on earth, and was sent out each morning to see if the smoke still rose from the lodges of those good people. Fanning the smoke with the eagle feather symbolizes the eagle delivering the message to the Creator that his people are still there and still believe. Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

I sent it to a bunch of friends. I think I will try to see if I can download it like someone else said, and send it to Dan! Virginia ----- Original Message ----- From: "Genealogy" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 9:15 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > Yeah I'm glad BP shared it here & on another list. I saw it when it was > shared on Facebook, but didn't think to pass it on to anyone other then a > few friends. > > It was great > > Alli :) > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Virginia" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 9:45 PM > Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > > > > This was/is beyond fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes. This needs to > be > > played for all to hear! > > GOD BLESS AMERICA! > > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 9.0.829 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2942 - Release Date: 06/16/10 11:35:00

Maybe there'd be a way to save it to a CD & then we could mail it you Dan so you could watch it. I think you'd love it too :) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Virginia" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 10:02 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > I am sooooooooooo sorry. It is beautiful beyond words and something that > needs to be heard by everyone. > Virginia

Yeah I'm glad BP shared it here & on another list. I saw it when it was shared on Facebook, but didn't think to pass it on to anyone other then a few friends. It was great Alli :) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Virginia" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 9:45 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > This was/is beyond fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes. This needs to be > played for all to hear! > GOD BLESS AMERICA!

I am sooooooooooo sorry. It is beautiful beyond words and something that needs to be heard by everyone. Virginia ----- Original Message ----- From: "DanM." <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 8:50 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > Got dial up - no can see ;( > Dan > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Virginia" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 8:45 PM > Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > > > > This was/is beyond fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes. This needs to > > be > > played for all to hear! > > GOD BLESS AMERICA! > > > > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 9.0.829 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2942 - Release Date: 06/16/10 11:35:00

Got dial up - no can see ;( Dan ----- Original Message ----- From: "Virginia" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 8:45 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > This was/is beyond fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes. This needs to > be > played for all to hear! > GOD BLESS AMERICA! >

This was/is beyond fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes. This needs to be played for all to hear! GOD BLESS AMERICA! ----- Original Message ----- From: "Genealogy" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 6:33 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0fQd858cRc&playnext_from=TL&videos=cWNozAevy > m8&feature=sub > > > maybe the link itself will work. (Cut & paste if its not clickable) > > > This is too good not to see :) > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "DanM." <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 7:22 PM > Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > > > > No attachments make it to roots web - people will have to write private > and > > ask for it. > > Dan M > > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 9.0.829 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2939 - Release Date: 06/14/10 23:35:00

----- Original Message ----- From: paleodan To: "Undisclosed-Recipient:;"@av1-7.us4.outblaze.com Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 9:47 PM Subject: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd This will make you proud......see attachment. Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd This happened in Georgia. Herman Cain was the MC of the event and called on this man who had raised his hand. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0fQd858cRc&playnext_from=TL&videos=cWNozAevym8&feature=sub

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0fQd858cRc&playnext_from=TL&videos=cWNozAevy m8&feature=sub maybe the link itself will work. (Cut & paste if its not clickable) This is too good not to see :) ----- Original Message ----- From: "DanM." <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 7:22 PM Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > No attachments make it to roots web - people will have to write private and > ask for it. > Dan M

No attachments make it to roots web - people will have to write private and ask for it. Dan M ----- Original Message ----- From: "Blue Panther" <[email protected]> Subject: [Cherokee Circle] Fw: Tea Party Member Stuns Crowd > > > > This will make you proud......see attachment. > > >

Creation Story - Haudenosaunee In the beginning there was no earth to live on, but up above, in the Great Blue, there was a woman who dreamed dreams. One night she dreamed about a tree covered with white blossoms, a tree that brightened up the sky when its flowers opened but that brought terrible darkness when they closed again. The dream frightened her, so she went and told it to the wise old men who lived with her in their village in the sky. "Pull up this tree," she begged them, but they did not understand. All they did was dig around its roots, to make space for more light. But the tree just fell through the hole they had made and disappeared. After that there was no light at all, only darkness. The old men grew frightened of the woman and her dreams. It was her fault that the light had disappeared forever. So they dragged her toward the hole and pushed her through as well. Down, down she fell, down toward the great emptiness. There was nothing below her but a heaving waste of water. She would surely have been smashed to pieces, this strange dreaming woman from the Great Blue, had not a fish hawk come to her aid. His feathers made a pillow for her and she drifted gently above the waves. But the fish hawk could not keep her up all on his own. He needed help. So he called out to the creatures of the deep. "We must find some firm ground for this poor woman to rest on," he said anxiously. But there was no ground, only the swirling, endless waters. A helldiver went down, down, down to the very bottom of the sea and brought back a little bit of mud in his beak. He found a turtle, smeared the mud onto its back, and dived down again for more. Then the ducks joined in. They loved getting muddy and they too brought beaksful of the ocean floor and spread it over the turtle's shell. The beavers helped -- they were great builders -- and they worked away, making the shell bigger and bigger. Everybody was very busy now and everybody was excited. This world they were making seemed to be growing enormous! The birds and the animals rushed about building countries, the continents, until, in the end, they had made the whole round earth, while all the time they sky woman was safely sitting on the turtle's back. And the turtle holds the earth up to this very day. Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Creation story - Comanche "One day the Great Spirit collected swirls of dust from the four directions in order to create the Comanche people. These people formed from the earth had the strength of mighty storms. Unfortunately, a shape-shifting demon was also created and began to torment the people. The Great Spirit cast the demon into a bottomless pit. To seek revenge the demon took refuge in the fangs and stingers of poisonous creatures and continues to harm people every chance it gets." http://www.indigenouspeople.net/commcrea.htm Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Creation Story - Ojibwa In the beginning before there were people, before there were animals a lone woman lived in a cave. She lived on the roots and berries of the plants. One night a magical dog crept into her cave and stretched out on the her bed beside her. As the night grew long the dog began to change. His body became smooth and almost hairless. His limbs grew long and straight. His features changed into those of a handsome warrior. Nine months later the woman birthed a child. He was the first Chippewa male and through him came the Chippewa peoples. Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Creation Story 2 - Chinook Talapas (Creator) gave life to the surface of the Earth. It grew in abundance. Later, he placed the animal forms of all the Totem Spirits on the surface of the Earth Mother, and they prospered. Talapas then instructed T'soona (Thunderbird) to carry these special eggs from the other place, and place them on the top of Kaheese, a mountain near the Yakaitl-Wimakl (Columbia River). T'soona did so. The Old Giantess, not wanting these special eggs to hatch, began to break the eggs. The vengeful Spirit Bird swiftly swooped down from Otelagh (the sun) and pursued the Old Giantess, and consumed her with fire, in revenge for her injustice. Soon the remaining eggs became the T'sinuk (Chinook). http://www.indigenouspeople.net/chinook.htm Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Buffalo Field Campaign releases "Wild Bison 2011" calendar. [ http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/images/covers.jpg ] Buffalo Field Campaign is excited to announce the release of the first ever calendar focused exclusively on America's only continuously wild population of bison. Wild Bison 2011 is a spectacular celebration of the beautiful bison. The calendar was compiled and produced by Buffalo Field Campaign, and features photographs submitted by our supporters or shot by BFC volunteers. Each month offers a seasonal perspective on wild bison in and around the Yellowstone Ecosystem and highlights their natural history. Wild Bison 2011 combines superb photos, artwork, facts, stories, and poems to convey the spirit of wild bison. These beautiful calendars cost $15.00 (including shipping) and are available on BFC's merchandise page [ https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/shop/index.jsp?storefront_KEY=554&t= ] or by sending a check to the address below. Please write Mike [ mailto:[email protected]?subject=Wild%20Bison%202011 ] for information on retail purchase or distributing calendars in your community. For the Buffalo! ----------------------------- Buffalo Field Campaign P.O. Box 957 West Yellowstone, MT 59758 406-646-0070 [email protected] [ mailto:[email protected] ] http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org [ http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org ] "*BFC is the only group working in the field every day in defense of the last wild buffalo population in the U.S.*" KEEP BFC ON THE FRONTLINES WITH A TAX DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTION TODAY [ https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=3647 ] Join Buffalo Field Campaign [ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/6876/signUp.jsp?key=3378 ] -- It's Free! Tell-a-Friend [ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/tellafriend.jsp?tell_a_friend_KEY=3835 ] Take Action [ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=26453 ]! Unsubscribe [ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2426/t/7926/p/salsa/supporter/unsubscribe/public/?unsubscribe_page_KEY=42 ] -- ROAM FREE!

----- Original Message ----- From: paleodan To: "Undisclosed-Recipient:;"@av1-7.us4.outblaze.com Sent: Sunday, June 13, 2010 8:57 PM Subject: Trees Trees I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree. A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the earth's sweet flowing breast; A tree that looks at God all day And lifts her leafy arms to pray; A tree that may in Summer wear A nest of robins in her hair; Upon whose bosom snow has lain; Who intimately lives with rain. Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree. ~Joyce Kilmer, "Trees," 1914

Creation Story Chinook - Chinook Chinook oral legend has it that the first MEN of the tribe came from the sky becuase they were the offspring of Thunderbird. The men then found and plucked women, (who were in various stages of development), from the valley floor. This was the first Chinook tribe. Also, the rock where the first Chinook woman was plucked still exists. It has a hole all the way through it where her arms passed right through the middle of the rock. I've never seen it but have been told how to get there and where it is. Very few people know about this place (until now), and I'm not at liberty to tell of it's whereabouts. The Chinook creation story centers in Oregon, on Saddle Mountain. That's where Thunderbird layed its eggs. Thunderbird was part man, part spirit being. An Ogress rolled five of Thunderbirds eggs down Saddle Mountain, and five men, each of different color, were born. They found their women growing in various states of development in the valley below. The chief man plucked his wife from a rock. Her arms went through the rock, as if she was hugging it. There is a rock with this feature in the Pacific Northwest. This group formed the first tribe split up as they kept moving further and further along the Columbia River. http://www.indigenouspeople.net/chinook.htm Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Creation story Cherokee 3 - Cherokee At first there was darkness and cold, vast and endless, stretching out in all directions. Beneath the great stone arch of the sky there was a dizzying drop. One by one tiny creatures began to awake and one by one they realized that they were cold, thirsty and very crowded. The first creature to awake said, "I smell water, I am a water beetle," and with that it jumped from the great stone arch of the sky. Much later there was a splash. The next creature to awake, said, "I can spin silk, I am a spider." And so it went as each creature awoke and realized what he or she was. Not long after, a voice was heard from far beneath the great stone arch of the sky. It was the water beetle, who said, "Underneath the water there is something soft, yet strong enough to hold us, with room enough for everyone." "Throw down some rope, so that we might fetch it," another creature on the great stone arch of the sky said, so the spider began to make some very strong ropes. The ropes were thrown down and the water beetle took them and swam beneath the waters. She then fastened them to the four corners of the great slab of mud that rested beneath the waters. When she surfaced, she told the other creatures who had remained on the great stone arch of the sky what she had done. They began to pull and haul at the ropes until the great slab of mud rose from beneath the waters. When they had finished, all the creatures began to scramble down the ropes to get to this new place which had room for everyone. When they reached the bottom, they drank their fill. Some creatures, realizing that they were fish, swam away, others flew away, and still others, realizing that they were frogs sank happily into the mud. There the land hung and there it hangs to this very day, until the day that will come when the ropes will break and the land will sink once more beneath the waters. Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]

Creation- Cherokee The earth is a great island floating in a sea of water, and suspended at each of the four cardinal points by a cord hanging down from the sky vault, which is of solid rock. When the world grows old and worn out, the people will die and the cords will break and let the earth sink down into the ocean, and all will be water again. The Indians are afraid of this. When all was water, the animals were above in Gälûñ'lätï, beyond the arch; but it was very much crowded, and they were wanting more room. They wondered what was below the water, and at last Dâyuni'sï, "Beaver's Grandchild," the little Water-beetle, offered to go and see if it could learn. It darted in every direction over the surface of the water, but could find no firm place to rest. Then it dived to the bottom and came up with some soft mud, which began to grow and spread on every side until it became the island which we call the earth. It was afterward fastened to the sky with four cords, but no one remembers who did this. At first the earth was flat and very soft and wet. The animals were anxious to get down, and sent out different birds to see if it was yet dry, but they found no place to alight and came back again to Gälûñ'lätï. At last it seemed to be time, and they sent out the Buzzard and told him to go and make ready for them. This was the Great Buzzard, the father of all the buzzards we see now. He flew all over the earth, low down near the ground, and it was still soft. When he reached the Cherokee country, he was very tired, and his wings began to flap and strike the ground, and wherever they struck the earth there was a valley, and where they turned up again there was a mountain. When the animals above saw this, they were afraid that the whole world would be mountains, so they called him back, but the Cherokee country remains full of mountains to this day. When the earth was dry and the animals came down, it was still dark, so they got the sun and set it in a track to go every day across the island from east to west, just overhead. It was too hot this way, and Tsiska'gïlï', the Red Crawfish, had his shell scorched a bright red, so that his meat was spoiled; and the Cherokee do not eat it. The conjurers put the sun another hand-breadth higher in the air, but it was still too hot. They raised it another time, and another, until it was seven handbreadths high and just under the sky arch. Then it was right, and they left it so. This is why the conjurers call the highest place Gûlkwâ'gine Di'gälûñ'lätiyûñ', "the seventh height," because it is seven hand-breadths above the earth. Every day the sun goes along under this arch, and returns at night on the upper side to the starting place. There is another world under this, and it is like ours in everything--animals, plants, and people--save that the seasons are different. The streams that come down from the mountains are the trails by which we reach this underworld, and the springs at their heads are the doorways by which we enter, it, but to do this one must fast and, go to water and have one of the underground people for a guide. We know that the seasons in the underworld are different from ours, because the water in the springs is always warmer in winter and cooler in summer than the outer air. When the animals and plants were first made--we do not know by whom--they were told to watch and keep awake for seven nights, just as young men now fast and keep awake when they pray to their medicine. They tried to do this, and nearly all were awake through the first night, but the next night several dropped off to sleep, and the third night others were asleep, and then others, until, on the seventh night, of all the animals only the owl, the panther, and one or two more were still awake. To these were given the power to see and to go about in the dark, and to make prey of the birds and animals which must sleep at night. Of the trees only the cedar, the pine, the spruce, the holly, and the laurel were awake to the end, and to them it was given to be always green and to be greatest for medicine, but to the others it was said: "Because you have not endured to the end you shall lose your, hair every winter." Men came after the animals and plants. At first there were only a brother and sister until he struck her with a fish and told her to multiply, and so it was. In seven days a child was born to her, and thereafter every seven days another, and they increased very fast until there was danger that the world could not keep them. Then it was made that a woman should have only one child in a year, and it has been so ever since. >From James Mooney's History, Myths, and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees. Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/ or Come visit us. "Native Village" [email protected]