--- title: Introductory—indian Stories — Wigwam stories told by North American Indians · full text with trees description: Introductory—indian Stories, «Wigwam stories told by North American Indians» by Mary Catherine Judd: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: The Indians, when trying to speak English, often use very short sentences with easy words, just as foreigners do. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg73136/25/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Wigwam stories told by North American…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg73136/) / Introductory—indian Stories # Introductory—indian Stories Introductory—indian Stories of «Wigwam stories told by North American Indians» by Mary Catherine Judd: the whole text, 15 sentences and 370 words. The small number after every sentence leads to its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself. The Indians, when trying to speak English, often use very short sentences with easy words, just as foreigners do.[1](1/ "tree and pragmatics") They will repeat a statement in different ways, so that their listeners will be sure to understand; this makes the stories they tell sound very queer sometimes.[2](2/ "tree and pragmatics") The Indians do not like to have any one laugh at them.[3](3/ "tree and pragmatics") It is not an easy matter to get them to tell their legends about trees, rocks, or living creatures.[4](4/ "tree and pragmatics") They once believed that everything had its manitou, or spirit, which took care of it, but by their contact with the white people they have lost much of their fear of these manitous, and also much of their faith in their power.[5](5/ "tree and pragmatics") The paleface must show himself a very good friend indeed before he is allowed to hear the stories told to native guests or to the children.[6](6/ "tree and pragmatics") The white friend may be a hunter, and then his Indian guide will tell in his own way stories connected with objects seen by them in the forest, on the plain, or on the mountain.[7](7/ "tree and pragmatics") Henry R. Schoolcraft, an American geologist, was much among the red men, from eastern New York to the source of the Mississippi, which he discovered.[8](8/ "tree and pragmatics") He married the granddaughter of a chief.[9](9/ "tree and pragmatics") He was allowed to hear the ancient legends, and published them in prose form in 1830.[10](10/ "tree and pragmatics") Henry W. Longfellow read them with so much interest that he told them again in his beautiful poem of Hiawatha, weaving into the story the bride Minnehaha of whom the Indians have no legend.[11](11/ "tree and pragmatics") The Ojibways, or Chippewas, tell stories of a hero called by them Menabozho.[12](12/ "tree and pragmatics") He is called the Foolish or Sly One; he is always playing tricks, for which he is usually punished.[13](13/ "tree and pragmatics") Many of these Chippewa stories which they are telling of him even now are woven into the poem of Hiawatha, as the poet thought that Iroquois name more musical than Menabozho, and, like many others, supposed the Iroquois and the Chippewas to be the same people.[14](14/ "tree and pragmatics") As they have no written language, their legends may change a little; the same story may be told in different ways, and the words they use may have various forms.[15](15/ "tree and pragmatics") - ← previous: [How the Cave People Found Dry Land on the Earth](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg73136/24/) - next →: [I. Iagoo, the Great Story-teller](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg73136/26/) - ↑ back to [Wigwam stories told by North American Indians](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg73136/)