# In the Reign of Coyote/Why the Coyote is so Cunning

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WHY THE COYOTE IS SO CUNNING
"Well, rest awhile now, Wantasson," said Juanita, with sympathy in her voice and eyes.
"Would it tire you to tell how man made Coyote more cunning?" inquired Antonio.
"No, talking of Coyote does not tire me." He lounged into a comfortable position, sighed a few times, and then began the tale.
Up to the time man was made, all the animals were equal. It is true that Coyote was the wisest of them all, and the others looked to him for advice, but they all had equal rights to live and be happy on the face of the earth.
When man was created, he was superior to them all. Then he had to decide which animals should ​be considered strongest. He sat about making bows, one for each animal of the world and all of different lengths. He worked during every ray of light, but nine sleeps had passed before he had finished all the bows. Then he sent word to the animals that he would distribute the bows the next sunrise.
At sundown they gathered from far and near, every animal both great and small. When they had all settled themselves for sleep around the camp fire, Coyote thought to himself: "I am the wisest of the animals, so I ought to receive the longest bow. I think I will not sleep at all. Then I will be the first to greet man at sunrise."
It was hard to keep awake in such silence. Coyote rubbed his eyes and wriggled his toes. Still he felt sleepy. "I must skip around awhile, or I shall surely fall asleep," he murmured.
He jumped and skipped around the fire. The other animals began to waken. "Is it sunrise so soon?" yawned Grizzly.
"No. Go to sleep," whispered Coyote. "I was just getting a drink and stumbled over the tree root." To himself he said: "This will never do. If I move around, all the others will keep awake too. If I do not move around, I shall certainly fall asleep."
​Just then the morning star peeped up over the hilltop. "I will watch her," said Coyote. "Her movements will keep me awake."
But the star traveled slowly, and his eyelids were weary of being open. "I know what I will do," and he sharpened two little sticks and put one in each eye to prop up his eyelids. "Now I will take a tiny nap, while my eyes are fixed on the star. When the sun comes up, the light in my open eyes will waken me."
The little nap grew into a sound sleep. Coyote's head lolled over on a manzanita bush. The sharp sticks in his eyes pierced right through the eyelids and kept them closed fast. Coyote slept on.
The morning star reached high in the sky. The leaves began to quiver. The birds called to each other their morning greetings. The animals stirred, rubbed their eyes, shook themselves, first slowly and then faster, and jumped to their feet facing the east. Still Coyote slept on.
As the sun stretched its golden fingers into the heavens, man appeared upon the hilltop. The animals clustered around him, all but Coyote, who still lay asleep unnoticed.
"As the sun stretched its golden fingers into the heavens"
​there was still one more bow left, the shortest of them all.
Man looked around. "What animal have I missed?" he asked. The animals glanced round their numbers. "Why, Coyote is not here!" said Cougar.
Away they all scampered to search for him. Soon they found him, fast asleep, with his head on the manzanita branch. They danced on him and shouted: "Oh, hi, Coyote! Wake up! wake up! You have the shortest bow. You 're not so strong as little squatty Frog. Oh, hi, Coyote! Coyote! Ha, ha!"
Coyote sat up dazed. The sticks held his eyelids shut fast. He could not see, but he could feel the sunshine; and the laughs of the animals maddened him.
He pulled the stick out of his right eye, then the one from his left. He blinked his eyes. Yes, there were all the animals, each with a bow. Only a tiny little bow was left at man's feet. Coyote put his head down between his paws and wept.
Man felt sorry for him, and said to the animals: "You should not laugh at him. He has helped you many a day. As I cannot make him the strongest animal, I will give him ten times his former cunning."
​Then Coyote lifted up his head and looked his thanks into man's eyes.
Ever since that day Coyote has not been the strongest of the animals; but he is, as he was before, the most cunning and the wisest. And to this day he is a friend of man and never hurts one of man's children.
"Were n't those animals horrid to laugh at him, when he had been so good to them?" and Juanita's eyes flamed with indignation.
"Yes, I 'm glad that he 's still the most cunning. And he never hurt a man, did he, Wantasson?"
"No, young Antonio. Never did he, and never will he. But there is that Tecla coming this way. You go to her. I must return to my work," and the party dispersed.