the seventh round she fell out of
the ring, and they put her into the l>ox and closed the lid fast. The
other ghosts seemed never to notice what had happe 1.
254 MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE [eth.ann.19
They took up the box and .started home toward the east. In a little
while the girl came to life again and begged to be let out of the box,
but the}' made no answer and went on. Soon she called again and said
she was hungry, but still they made no answer and went on. After
another while she spoke again and called for a drink and pleaded so
that it was very hard to listen to her, but the men who carried the box
said nothing and still went on. When at last they were very near
home, shecalled again and begged them to raise the lid just a little,
because she was smothering. They were afraid she was really dying
now, so they lifted the lid a little to give her air, but as they did so
there was a fluttering sound inside and something flew past them into
the thicket and they heard a redbird cry, " Jewish/ Jewish! hwish!" in
the bushes. They shut clown the lid and went on again to the settle-
ments, but when they got there and opened the box it was empty.
So we know the Redbird is the daughter of the Sun, and if the men
had kept the box closed, as the Little Men told them to do, they would
have brought her home safely, and Ave could bring back our other
friends also from the