The Pukwudjee and the Morning Star

"The Pukwudjee and the Morning Star" by Julia Darrow Cowles is a captivating children's story that weaves elements of Native American folklore with rich, imaginative storytelling. The narrative follows the adventures of the Pukwudjee, a small magical creature known for its mischievous spirit and connection to nature. As the Pukwudjee embarks on a quest involving the enchanting Morning Star, readers are introduced to themes of courage, friendship, and the importance of respecting the natural world. The beautifully illustrated pages enhance the tale, making it an engaging read for young audiences and a delightful exploration of cultural myths and values.

• Children
• Short story

								
ONCE upon a time, in the Indian country, two children were left alone
in a village. All the other people had gone to a far-away country.

The sister, who was the older, thought, “I must take good care of my
baby brother,” though she was not much more than a baby herself. And
this she did. She cooked food for him, and she made him little
moccasins, and crooned a song for him when it was time for him to
sleep.

She grew up rapidly, but the baby brother seemed scarcely to grow at
all. He became strong and sturdy, however, though he was so small a
mite.

The sister watched over him carefully, and as soon as he could run
about she made him a tiny bow and arrows, and taught him how to
shoot. At the same time she hung a shell about his neck, for a charm,
and she named him He-of-the-Little-Shell.

For all his small size, he soon learned to use the bow and arrow, and
his aim was very true. He brought home birds and squirrels for food,
and after a time he was able to bring down bigger game, so that they
fared very well.

But He-of-the-Little-Shell did not grow. When he stood beside his
sister he looked no bigger than a squirrel.

While the boy was out hunting, his sister busied herself about their
lodge, but she looked often toward the east, for she loved the clouds
and the sky and the morning sun. She was always outside the lodge in
the early morning, that she might watch the sunrise, for she thought
the eastern sky more beautiful than any other part of the heavens.

So the two lived on very happily, for the little brother was a merry
fellow, full of tricks and mischief.

One morning, as he was hunting, he saw a man fishing for beaver through
a hole in the ice. He watched him, and when the man had caught several
he loaded them upon a sled which he drew away. He-of-the-Little-Shell
followed. He ran up close to the load and, with a slash of his shell,
cut off the tail of one of the beavers, and ran away home with it.

For several days he played the same trick, and the man was very much
puzzled to know how it was that one of his beavers always lost its
tail before he reached home. At length He-of-the-Little-Shell followed
the man home, and when the beavers were unloaded he stepped out and
spoke to the man.

The hunter was astonished to see so tiny a fellow. “Is it you who has
cut my beavers’ tails?” he asked.

“Yes,” answered He-of-the-Little-Shell.

“I have a mind to kill you!” exclaimed the hunter, angrily.

“Oh, but you could not do it,” said the boy quickly, and before the
man could think, he had disappeared.

One day when he came home from the hunt he said to his sister, “The
time has come when I must go away from our lodge. I must go to the
mountains and live among the rocks and caves. That is my true home,
for I am a Pukwudjee,--a little man of the mountains. But,” he
added, “I shall not leave you here alone. You shall go to the home you
would love best of all. Tell we where it shall be.”

Then the sister answered, “I love the eastern sky best of all. I
should love to live there.”

“It shall be so,” replied her brother. “I will go up the mountain,
where the little people dwell. You shall be carried to the eastern
sky; the four winds of heaven shall lift you. I will look up often and
see you there.”

“And I,” said his sister, “will look down upon you and watch over you
every morning. When you see the rosy clouds you will say, ‘My sister
is painting her face’.”

They bade each other good-bye, and He-of-the-Little-Shell ran up the
mountain side, for he was a Pukwudjee, a “little man of the
mountains,” as the Indians call them.

The four winds of heaven carried the sister to the eastern sky, where
she became the Morning Star, and there she watches over her brother
and all his people.
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