“Hiawatha,” said the wolf, “you must have been looking, or you would not have been hurt.”  “No, no,” he replied again, “I was not.  I will repay the saucy wolf this,” thought he to himself.  So, next day, taking up a bone to obtain the marrow, he said to the wolf, “Cover your head and don’t look at me, for I fear a piece may fly in your eye.”  The wolf did so.  He then took the leg-bone of the moose, and looking first to see if the wolf was well covered, he hit him a blow with all his might.  The wolf jumped up, cried out, and fell prostrate from the effects of the blow.  “Why,” said he, “do you strike me so?” “Strike you!” he replied; “no, you must have been looking at me.”  “No,” answered the wolf, “I say I have not.”  But he persisted in the assertion, and the poor magician had to give up.

Hiawatha was an expert hunter when he earnestly tried to be.  He went out one day and killed a fat moose.  He was very hungry, and sat down to eat.  But immediately he fell into great doubts as to the proper point to begin.  “Well,” said he, “I do not know where to begin.  At the head?  No!  People will laugh, and say ‘he ate him backwards!’” He went to the side.  “No!” said he, “they will say I ate him sideways.”  He then went to the hind-quarter.  “No!” said he, “they will say I ate him toward the head.  I will begin here, say what they will.”  He took a delicate piece from the rump, and was just ready to put it in his mouth, when a tree close by made a creaking sound, caused by the rubbing of one large branch against another.  This annoyed him.  “Why!” he exclaimed, “I cannot eat while I hear such a noise.  Stop! stop!” said he to the tree.  He was putting the morsel again to his mouth, when the noise was repeated.  He put it down, exclaiming, “I cannot eat in such confusion,” and immediately left the meat, although very hungry, to go and put a stop to the racket.  He climbed the tree and was pulling at the limb, when his arm was caught between two branches so that he could not extricate himself.  While thus held fast, he saw a pack of wolves coming in the direction towards his meat.  “Go that way! go that way!” he cried out; “why do you come here?” The wolves talked among themselves and said, “Hiawatha must have something here, or he would not tell us to go another way.”  “I begin to know him,” said an old wolf, “and all his tricks.  Let us go forward and see.”  They came on and finding the moose, soon made away with the whole carcass.  Hiawatha looked on wistfully to see them eat till they were fully satisfied, and they left him nothing but the bare bones.  The next heavy blast of wind opened the branches and liberated him.  He went home, thinking to himself, “See the effect of meddling with frivolous things when I already had valuable possessions.”