The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-08-22
CHAHTA WIT AND HUMoR.
Their Legends and Apologies.


A Chahta Orator.
The following legends and fables have been
selected by us from great number collected
by Father Rouquette, who says that there is
not in the world single bird, OF animal or
tree, with which the Chahtas have not connect.
ed some explanatory legend, some ingenious
and characteristic story. During the long
winter nights, they love to sit by the fire and
to listen to some aged Chahta Scheherezade or
to some copper-colored story-teller, who al
ternately moves them to laughter and to tears.
Here. for instance, is their account of the
Creation of The White and the Red Man.
"Once upon time the Great Spirit, the
Master of Life, who is also the Chief of all the
Manitous, wishing to create man, assembled
all the fishes, the birds and the animals, to
consult them as to what should be the color
of him who was to become their King. Each
one spoke in his turn and gave his opinion.
The frog, the sheep, the horse and the OK,
who spoke last, said to the Great Spirit: Our
King must be as white as a swans feathers
The Master of Life picked up, near the lake
shore, some dust that looked like snow, which
he mixed with sweet water to make q Pale
Face. But after looking closely at his handi.
work, he said: This will not do. This pale,
sallow color indicates weakness and death.
must make another man."
He then again called together the fishes,
the birds and the animals, and each one gave
his opinion. After all the others had spoken,
the alligator, the eagle, the deer and the
buffalo came forward and said to the Great
Spirit: "Let him be as red1as a Cardinal"
The Master of Life Their eupon went on the
top of mountain for some earth of the color
of blood, which he mixed with salt water. and
in this way the red fre-co!ored man was
made. He looked at his work and said: "This
is well This red color is the emblem Of
fire, of strength, of health and life"
"While the Pale Face and the Red Man
were walking around. admiring all that they
saw, box filed with various articles came
down from heaven. The Great Spirit said to
the Red Man: "Open it and take what thou
hawk and some other implements to fish, to
hunt and to go to war with. The Pale Face
choose paper pens, penknives, and thous-
and osher fancy things.
From that day they parted company and
went on two different roadside Great Spirit
so willed it. The forests and the prairies are
the home of the red man the pale face lives
in the villages and the cities ; both follow
their. appointed destiny"
The next legend undertakes to explain the
Origin of the Negro.
There was once an old woman who. having
no children, adopted two orphans, boy and
girl. She had built her cabin in solitary
spot, on the bank of bayou, whose sparkling
and cool waters flowed in deep bed Being
compelled to travel to q far away place, and
unable to take her adopted children along
with her, after making her preparations, she
left them something to eat and told them to
take good care of the cabin, and above all
things not to touch or open box she pointed
ing. There was great silence in the forest,
the birds were mute, and the clouds in the
sky portended some great misfortune.
Left alone in the cabin, the two children
felt sad, and knew not what to do to pass the
time. When night came, and the whip-poor-
will began to sing in . near thicket, the little
girl said to her companion "Why did our
old mother forbid US to open this box? I
would like to know what there is in it let us
60 and open it with care
The little boy refused at first, demonstrated
with her, and even threatened to whip her;
but she insisted SO much and SO cunningy,
and managed to raise his curiosity to such a
high degree that he finally consented. Each
one taking up Ratchet. they soon opened
the box; but what sight then appeared be-
tore them Swarms of 1eas, thousands upon
thousands, came out of a sudden, and in such
prodigious numbers that they soon covered
the walls, the floor, and the ceiling of the
cabin one inch thick. More dead than alive,
the two children were looking at each other
speechless with establishment. when they
heard the footsteps of the old lady, who was
then approaching. She entered, saw what
had happened, then went for faggot OF rot
ten branches she took from magical tree
that grows in the swamps. She then set ire
to them in the middle Of the cabin, tied
aAe two children to a post, and then went out
after locking up the door and window.
The poor children, trembling with fear,
were almost stifled by the smoke when the fire
want ont and their step mother opened the
door. They were no longer red. but black,
and this is the way the negro race came into
the world. They afterwards married. and
their children and their children's children
we're all black like themselves, and became
the progenitors of the Shobali- Ousshi, or
ssChildren of Smoke.
Our next specimen isa Chahta apologize, en-
titled
shawee aud Shuk.Atta.