One of Summer’s brothers left a baby son. The baby’s
mother and grandmother took him south to live. When the baby
grew to boyhood he often asked about his father. His mother

would not answer him. “Where is my father?” he would ask. But
his mother would not reply.

16



Coyote kept his plan to kill the sun. He made a big knife
and hid it under himself. He knew the knife was not good
enough and waited a few more nights. He slipped away from the
sun during the day and made another knife from flint.

10



Booklets available in the Level IV sequence are listed below. Numbers refer to the Planned Sequence of use
in the Teacher’s Manual. Materials developed by these tribes and others in the Northwest are included in
the Levels I, II and III sequences.

i

3.

4.

5.

10.

11.

. Warm Springs Animal Stories

The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation of Oregon

. Snail Women at Sq*a’le

The Suquamish Tribe of the Port Madison
Reservation

Blue Jay — Star Child/Basket Woman
Muckleshoot Tribe

Assiniboine Woman Making Grease
Assiniboine Tribe of the Fort Peck Reservation

Coyote
The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation of Oregon

|. How the Summer Season Came

Assiniboine Tribe of the Fort Belknap
Reservation

. Little Weasel’s Dream

Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead
Reservation

. Fort Hall Stories

Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall
Reservation

. The Bear Tepee

Northern Cheyenne Tribe

Sioux Stories and Legends
Sioux Tribe of the Fort Peck Reservation

Kootenai Stories
Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead
Reservation

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

Chief Mountain’s Medicine

Gros Ventre Tribe from the Fort Belknap
Reservation

Coyote the Trickster

Burns Paiute Reservation

Running Free

Shoalwater Bay

Salish Coyote Stories

Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead
Reservation

Coyote and the Cowboys
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall
Reservation

Napi’s Journey

Blackfeet Tribe

Warm Springs Stories

The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation of Oregon

Tepee Making

Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead
Reservation

Baskets and Canoes
Skokomish Tribe

Warrior People
Blackfeet Tribe


In early times the sun was hot. Often it scorched the earth
and people were uncomfortable. “I could be a better sun.” Coyote
thought to himself. “I will take the sun’s place.”



Sek IN

The boy’s mother encouraged him to become strong.
Everyday the boy took a sweat bath in the sweatlodge so he
would obtain the power of heat. From the sweat bath the boy
plunged into the river so he would obtain the power of cold.
When he became a young man he was very strong and had
special powers. These powers were heat and cold. One day the
young man said to his mother, “I think I am prepared to meet
anyone and anything.”

17



The mother’s story made the young man eager for re-
venge. He called the five winter brothers to a wrestling match.
One at a time the young man fought them. He overcame the
eldest brother and cut off his head. He overcame the second
brother and cut off his head. He also killed the third and fourth
winter brothers. The young man let the youngest brother re-
main alive.

19



14

“That's right,” replied Coyote. “I’m not going to let you. I
am going to divide the year into four seasons. You will never
again be as hot as you used to be. You will be warm in summer
but not scorching hot. Winter will be your time to rest. Spring
will be a middle season when you will be getting yourself ready
for summer again.



“Iam very glad to see you and talk with you,” Coyote said.
“Your father and my father once camped near here. Would you
like to see the place where they camped?”



At last, Coyote went to Frog with his problem. “Help me
get hold of the sun,” Coyote said.

Frog said, “ You throw me against the sun, I’ll grab it with
my hands and bring it down to earth.”



So Coyote tried to catch the sun. He traveled west to seize
it but when he got there, the sun dropped out of sight. Coyote
traveled east to meet the sun but when he got there, it was high
over his head. He made a boat and traveled east by water but
when he got there, the sun was in the middle of the sky.

O8ee
| te ey



All the seasons were happy except Winter. Winter was not
satisfied because he thought he should control a longer part of
the year than Summer. Winter challenged Summer and his four
brothers to a wrestling match. Winter won and all of Summer’s
brothers were killed. The earth became very cold for a long time.



\

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r-

iN - ——-~
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While Frog was on his journey to the sky, Coyote planned

ae
what he would say upon Frog’s return. Coyote used his special
powers and made some places to show the sun. When Frog came
back Coyote welcomed the sun warmly.

yp

oO os
he Y, =



i) THE INDIAN READING SERIES:
% Stories and Legends of the Northwest



Level V Book 12


Coyote led the sun to the remains of a sweatlodge on the
river bank. The framework of willows was still standing. The
rocks which had been heated for the sweat baths were also
there.

The sun was convinced their fathers had been friends and
he was willing to be Coyote’s friend. The sun decided it was all
right to camp with Coyote.



Coyote led the sun to a good camping place, scraped off the
earth and showed the sun the ashes of an old campfire. He
pointed to five old tepee poles. “Our fathers lived in this tepee,”
said Coyote.



Coyote took hold of Frog and threw him with all his might
at the sun. Frog began his journey to try and seize the sun to pull
it down to earth.



The young man’s mother was glad. “Now I will tell you
about your father,” she said. She told him about the wrestling
match between the five winter brothers and the five summer
brothers.

18



Developed by the Pacific Northwest Indian Reading and Language Development Program
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 300 Southwest Sixth Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204

Copyright © 1981 by the Klamath Tribe
Allrights reserved.

The work upon which this publication is based was performed pursuant to Contra
No. 40-80-0105 with the Educational Equity Group/Multicultural/Bilingual Division
of the National Institute of Education. It does not, however, necessarily reflect the
views of that agency.

Printed and bound in the United States of America


ber

Each time the two lay down to sleep, Coyote kept watch-
ing for his chance. Sun would lay with his eyes open. Finally, one
time the sun was looking in another direction, Coyote took his
flint and cut off the sun’s head.

11



That’s what Coyote did. After stepping three times across
the body and head, they grew back together. The sun came to
life. He yawned and stretched.

“Oh, I have enjoyed my rest,” the sun said. “I’m not going
to work so hard again.”

13



THE INDIAN READING SERIES
Stories and legends of the Northwest

Coyote Arranges the Seasons
Level V Book 12

By members of the Klamath, Modoc and Paiute committee

Marc McNair, Coordinator
Linda Harrington

Cleve Hecocta

Laura Hecocta, Illustrator
Rose Mary Treetop

Illustrated by Laura Hecocta

Joseph Coburn, Director
Pacific Northwest Indian Program
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory



THE INDIAN READING SERIES: Stories and Legends of the
Northwest is a collection of authentic material cooperatively devel-
oped by Indian people from twelve reservations. Development ac-
tivities are guided by a Policy Board which represents the Indian
community of the Pacific Northwest. The Pacific Northwest Indian
Reading and Language Development Program Policy Board mem-
bers are:

+ Warren Clements — Warm Springs
Chairman

+ Clement Azure — Devils Lake Sioux

+ Walter Moffett — Nez Perce

+ Emmett Oliver — Quinault

+ Bob Parsley — Chippewa

+ Lloyd Smith — Warm Springs

* Max Snow

+ Jeanne Thomas — Yakima


Coyote, however, planned to kill the sun as soon as he was
asleep. Occasionally Coyote would look over at his companion
expecting to find him sleeping. But the sun was always awake.
He always had his eyes wide open, just as in the daytime.



Coyote went up to the sky and became the sun. He found
he did not like to spend all of his days traveling across the sky.

Coyote said, “I'll have to put the sun’s head beside his body.
Tl straddle him three times and he will come back to life.”

12