“Nanahboozhoo was then still living with his grandmother, Nokomis, and was sorry to see that she often suffered from the cold and that the food was miserable because it was not cooked.  So he set his wits to work and decided that something must be done.  As he should now have to deal with the Muche Munedoos, evil spirits, he had to be very careful.  He put himself in various disguises and at length he heard all about how the coyote had stolen some of the fire from the watchers in the underground world, who possess enormous quantities of it.  It frightened him a little when he heard that there was so much fire in the world under us, but he was not apt to be afraid very long and so as he went on searching, and on the sly listening to the talks of windegoos and others, he found that the fire for which he had been so long searching was in the possession of a fierce old medicine warrior who guarded it with the greatest care.  Those who had employed the coyote to get it had intrusted its keeping to him.  In those days they had an idea that fire was such a dangerous thing that it would be almost certain destruction to the race if it was given to all.  This old warrior had his two daughters, who were great, fierce women, to assist him in guarding the fire.

“Several attempts had been made to steal the fire ere Nanahboozhoo resolved to see what he could do.  All of these other efforts had failed, and the parties who tried them were killed.  Nokomis heard of these unsuccessful attempts and tried to dissuade her grandson, Nanahboozhoo, from such a dangerous enterprise.

“Nanahboozhoo, however, was a very skillful fellow, and although this was one of his first great undertakings, for it was long ago, he was not to be stopped by her fears, and so away he went.  As the ice was not yet on the waters he took his birch canoe and paddled eastward as far as he could.  Then he hid his canoe where he could easily find it on his return.

“The next thing he did was to transform himself into a rabbit, and in that shape he hurried on until he saw in the distance the sacred wigwam where dwelt the old guardian of the fire and his two daughters, who were famous for their height and their strength.  To excite the pity of these daughters Nanahboozhoo jumped into some water, and then crawling out, wet and cold, he slowly approached the wigwam.  Here the two daughters found him, and he looked so miserable that they took pity on him and at once carried him into the wigwam and set him down near the sacred fire, that he might soon get warm and dry.”

[Illustration:  “Where the fire was stolen out of the center of the earth.”]

“How very kind that was of the old man’s daughters,” said Minnehaha.

“I don’t know about that,” said the more matter-of-fact Sagastao; “folks sometimes get into trouble by taking up everything that comes along.  Remember that old rascal that humbugged father.”

But Souwanas, remembering his promise, adroitly shunted off the youngsters and resumed his story.