Glooscap and Other Stories

OOCHIGEASKW THE LITTLE SCARRED GIRL

N the olden time there was a large Indian

village on the shore of a great lake. At one end of the village there lived an Indian with his three daughters. The mother was dead, and the two elder daughters did all the work of the Wigwam.

The youngest child was a timid, sickly little girl. Her sisters hated her and were very cruel to her. When her father was away on hunting trips, they would beat her and abuse her in every way they could think of. They would even burn her with hot ashes and fire brands. After a while, the little girl became so covered with burns that they left scars all over her face and body; and her hair was singed close to her skin.

When her father returned from a hunting trip and saw her, he said:

“Why are you so burned and scarred?” But she was so afraid of her sisters that she dared not tell him.

“Oh, she is determined to play in the hot 3