American Facts
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CHEROKEE BEAR LEGEND
The father and mother talked it over and then told the headmen of the clan. They held a council about the matter and after everything had been said they decided: "Here we must work hard and have not always enough. There he says is always plenty without work. We will go with him. "So they fasted seven days, and on the seventh morning al the Ani-Tsa-gu-hi left the settlement and started for the mountains as the boy led the way.
When the people of the other towns heard of it they were very sorry and sent their headman to persuade the AniTsaguhi to stay at home and not go into the woods to live. The messengers found them already on the way, and were surprised to notice that their bodies were beginning to be covered with hair like that of animals, because for seven days they had not taken human food and their nature were changing. The Ani Tsaguhi would not come back, but said, "we are going where there is always plenty to eat. Hereafter we shall be called "yonv(a) (bears)", and when yourselves are hungry come into the woods and call us and we shall give you our own flesh. You need not be afraid to kill us, for we shall live always". Then they thought the messengers the songs with which to call them and bear hunters have the song still. When they had finished the songs, the AniTsuguhi stared on again and the messengers turned back to the settlements, but after going a little way they looked back and saw a drove of bears going into the woods.