“Thus she tried to put them on their guard against the terrible foes that had devoured so many of their people.  The boys, however, were not much frightened, and they eagerly set off on their journey.

“They were especially warned by their anxious mother not to go to the east, as there was a narrow lake there to which many of these evil creatures came for water, especially a great monster wolf that had devoured many people.  Yet they immediately started off in that direction, for, like some other boys, they did not obey even their mother.  It was noon before they reached the lake.  At first, as they examined it, everything seemed very quiet and still.

“‘Mother must have been mistaken,’ said Sesigizit; ’I do not see any living thing here.’

“But as they wandered farther along the shore, suddenly Ooseemeeid cried out: 

“‘O see that great wolf on the other side!’

“They dropped down as quickly as they could, but the fierce brute had already caught sight of them.  He was very much larger than any of the wolves that now howl in the dark forests.  He not only destroyed many of the people, but when he came to springs, or small streams, he either drank up all the water or so spoiled it that it was unfit for use.

“The boys shot their arrows at him, but his sides were so tough, for he had bones like jointed armor upon them, that he was only slightly wounded.  He was, however, made very angry by their attacks, and he picked up a magic stick and threw it at them.  They would have fared badly if they had not so suddenly thrown themselves upon the ground that it passed over them.

“When the boys saw that their arrows were not swift enough to kill such a great animal they decided to use the magic rabbit sticks which their father, the sun, had given them, with orders that they were only to be used when the arrows failed.

“The wolf, when he saw that one of his magic sticks had missed its aim, was more savage than ever, and he seized his remaining one, for he only had two, and he threw it with all his power at the boys.  This time they both jumped high up from the ground and the stick passed under them.

“It was their turn now, and so they both threw their magic sticks with such force that the great bony armor of the wolf was crushed in and he was killed.

“Sesigizit quickly ran around the lake to the spot where the great body lay and cut out the heart of the wolf, while Ooseemeeid secured the two magic sticks that the wolf had thrown at them, as well as their own weapons, and then with these trophies they returned to their own home.

“‘Where have you been?’ asked the anxious mother when they appeared.

“‘We have been to the lake,’ they replied.

“She could hardly believe it.

“‘My boys,’ she said, ’you surely are mistaken, for no one who goes there returns.  The great monsters that devour our people live there, and they let no one escape.’