Glooscap the great chief, and other stories - ElectricCanadian.com

THE MAGICAL DANCING DOLL
there lived in the forest an Indian
ONCE with his wife and seven sons. Every
day the father and his six older sons went out
hunting, and the youngest would stay and help
his mother; for he was too young to go hunt
ing with the others.
The little boy s especial work was to dry the
moccasins for his father and brothers. At
night, when they came back from the hunt, and
their moccasins were wet with snow water, the
little boy would wring the water out of each
one, and put it near the fire. Then he would
watch it until it would be dry, and ready to
use again. And, because he did this work, they
began to call him Noo-je-ke-si-gu-no-da-sit, the
Wringer-and-Dryer-of-Moccasins. So Noojekesigunodasit
became his name.
Noojekesigunodasit was busy from morning
until night, helping his mother. He would
have been a happy child, but for one thing.
His eldest brother was very cruel to him. He
would beat him whenever he had the oppor
tunity, and he would take his food away from
77