Then began the preparation of the feast. Some of the Indians added dry wood
to the fire until there was a hot, smokeless blaze. Others took out their
sharp hunting knives and cleverly cut up the ducks, rabbits, and
partridges. Then these pieces were spitted on the ends of sharp points of
hard wood and skillfully broiled or toasted in the hot flames. As fast as
the dainty bits of meat were cooked and a little cooled they were given to
the children in their fingers, and in that way the little ones had their
feast.
Now, please don't turn up your noses at such a feast. Think of it: out in a
wigwam in the lovely forest, where the wild birds sing and the squirrels
chatter, where is heard the music of the waves playing on the shore but a
few yards away, with great friendly Indians as your waiters! The very air
of that northern summer gives you an appetite ready for anything.
Those little people, red and white, soon became the jolliest of friends,
and as the white children could speak the Indian language as well as their
own they were soon all chattering away most merrily while they daintily
picked the bones. Of course this way of eating was hard upon their hands,
faces, and clothing, but what healthy child ever gave a second thought--if
a first--to any of these things?
After a time this feast, as all feasts must, came to an end. Then the
question was, "What shall we do next for the children?" for the whole day
had been planned by the grown-up Indians for the entertainment of the
little people.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25