Summary

Chapter 1 again relates the story of the boy who came into the Piegan camp only to disappear the next morning. After the boy’s disappearance, hunters would return from the woods with stories of encountering the bear-boy. One hunter said that he had been paralyzed by the bear’s presence, and that the bear had come up to him and lain his head on his genitals. In that moment, a deep understanding passed between hunter and bear, both of whom were without fear. Then the bear cried in a human voice.

The last paragraph of Chapter 1 concerns Tsoai, the great tree stump tied to the myth of the boy-turned-bear. Every man begins his day by casting his eyes on Tsoai and acknowledging its existence. This acknowledgement reminds the man that everything is at it should be in the world.

In Chapter 2, Set and Grey...