When lo, a great wonder! For the Spirit of the Old Rock, even that
which was itself, turned all the dust to black flies, into the stinging
and evil things which drive men and beasts mad, so that its hatred and
spite might be carried out on all living creatures unto the end of
time.
And having had their ill-will of the Rock and seen it become Flies, the
two went through the forest, and so on till they came to a village of
good, honest folk; and knowing what manner of men they were, Lox
resolved to forthwith play them an evil trick, for in all life there
was nothing half so dear to him as to make mischief, the worse the
better.
And this time it came into his head that it would be a fine piece of
wit to go into the town as a gay girl and get married, and see what
would come of it, trusting to luck to fashion a sad fool out of
somebody. So having made himself into a delicate young beauty, richly
attired, he entered the place; and truly the town was soon agog over
the new guests. And the young chief of the tribe, wanting her, won her
without waste of time. Truly there lieth herein some mystery. I know
not what, only this I know: that there are in all towns certain folk
who, by means of magic or meddling, always find out everything about
everybody, and then tittle-tattle thereof. Now, albeit Lox had utterly
abjured all the sinfulness of manhood, and had made a new departure in
an utterly new direction, saying not a word thereof to any one, yet in
a brief measure of time, one here, another there, Jack in a corner and
Jane by the bush, began to whisper of a strange thing, and hint that
all was not as it should be, and, whatever the chief might think, that
in their minds matters were going wrong in his wigwam.
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