Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1873-07-03
Selecte1 Miscell laug.
Stories Which Appear Common to the
Human Race.

The Nation says: Curious as it may
be, it was entirely to be expected that
far away under the equator, On the
banks of the Amazonan streams, the
investigator of folklore should come
upon the same tales that are told to chill
dren in nursery rooms under the Arctic
circle. The adventure of our Jack the
Giant Killer, who challenged the Welsh
giant to eat with him, Prof. Hartt
heard related in Tupi language in a
Brazilian forest; the 'skufnpiras" are
anthropomorphic wood-spirits charac-
terized by reverse feet, who lead the
traveller estray, perhaps to destruction,
but who, though generally malefcient,
sometimes do man a good turn; many
myths relate how the hunter has been
presented by one of them with uner-
ring arrows that cam miss the mark.
Man may sometimes oayNft cenem and
it is told of one of them that hunter
played on him Jack the Giant Killers
trick, and induced him to cut himself
open and thus commit suicide. So, too,
the Tupi Oiara, or water-sprite, like
the mermaid and Lrly of Northern
mythology, entices human beings to
her home beneath the water. Again,
the Amizonian Indians narrate the
story of d match at running between a
tortoise and deer. The former sta
tions.her relatives along the course at
short distances, and beats her antago-
nist-'A fable found also in Africa
and Siam,'' remarks Prof. Hartt ;
found also in the Sea Islands, we will
add, and substantially the fable every
where found which illustrates the gen
eral truth that the.race is not always
to the swift. The swan maiden the
Indians have also; only with them it
is q dress of parrot feathers that the
spirit lays aside; she is seized by man
before she can resume it, and becomes
his wife and the mother of new tribe.
Beasts and bird myths, Prof. HART
found numerous in the Tupi. One of
these is about a second wise tortoise.
He wagers with a big fish that he can
pull the fish ashore, and then going to
a tapir, he wagers that he can pull the
tapir into the water. The tapir and
the tortoise then proceed to the waters
edge, where the fish awaits the contest,
and the tortoise tying both of them to-
gether with sipo, wins the wager, for.
after long struggle, both fish and ta-
pir confess themselves exhausted by
the endeavor which as each suppose,
he has made against the effort of the
perspicacious tortoise. The ibis, in a
less ingenious but equally effective
manner, cheats the night-hawk.
Once on a time the night-hawk
spoke like people. His shirt was very
pretty, because it was so red, but the
ibis shirt was black and ugly. The ibis
looked at the night-hawk and was pleas
ed with the night-hawk's shirt. The
ibis came to the side of the night-hawk.
''Lend thy shirt to me-" he said to the
night-hawk. .'Why dost thou wish to
borrow my shirt:'' The ibis answer
ed: II wish to amuse myself; and go
to dance" "Until when?" the night
hawk asked. TO this the ibis answer
ed: "Until three days after" The
night-hawk took off his shirt and gave
it to the ibis. 'Hereit is, do not cheat
me; await thee" The ibis went away;
never did he return; he went complete
ly away from the night-hawk; never
did he appear in his sight again. The
night-haWk awaited him, but he ap-
peared not. And the night-hawk wept;
he cried and said: 'Ibis, bring back
my shirt to mep' Always he cried on
account Of the ibis.
This is why the night-hawk goes
clad in sombre attire, while the ibis is
Of gay plumage, and ..erhaps it is to
answer the question: "Why is the ibis
red % that the fable was invented; if
so, it goes into large class-as, for
instance, the class containing the fable
w hich ~ les the asran ehira,. hacaucn