--- title: Thunderbirds. (no. 2.) — Ojibwa myths and tales · full text with trees description: Thunderbirds. (no. 2.), «Ojibwa myths and tales» by Geo. E. Laidlaw: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: Told by John York. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg76755/5/) [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/) / [Ojibwa myths and tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg76755/) / Thunderbirds. (no. 2.) # Thunderbirds. (no. 2.) Thunderbirds. (no. 2.) of «Ojibwa myths and tales» by Geo. E. Laidlaw: the whole text, 35 sentences and 701 words. The small number after every sentence leads to its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself. Told by John York.[1](1/ "tree and pragmatics") Once two Indians, a man and his wife, camped near a little lake.[2](2/ "tree and pragmatics") The Indian was trapping.[3](3/ "tree and pragmatics") He had a dream one night never to cross on the ice at night on any lake, but one day shortly afterwards he went too far away hunting and got very tired.[4](4/ "tree and pragmatics") As he was coming home with his bag of beaver on his back, and his ice chisel in his hand, he came to a narrow place in the lake where he either had to cross on the ice or go a long way around, so he thought he’d chance the ice (risk it for once), but when he got about half way over he heard something coming down from above, but could not see anything because it was dark.[5](5/ "tree and pragmatics") He fainted (became unconscious) and dropped on the ice, and the next thing he knew he found himself sitting inside a big bird’s hand (or claws) with all his game, beaver, ice chisel and bag.[6](6/ "tree and pragmatics") He could not do anything except to remain very still.[7](7/ "tree and pragmatics") After a while he saw something ahead, which was a rock, and the big bird lit on the rock and let the man go and flew away again.[8](8/ "tree and pragmatics") The man saw two young ones (young Thunderbirds) coming towards him, and when one of these got near enough it opened its mouth wide.[9](9/ "tree and pragmatics") The man got up and got his chisel and knocked the young bird down and killed it.[10](10/ "tree and pragmatics") This young bird was very big and heavy (as York expressed it, “it would weigh easy a ton”).[11](11/ "tree and pragmatics") The man made up his mind what to do, as he had got to die anyway, so he went to work and opened the young bird and took all the insides out and got in himself.[12](12/ "tree and pragmatics") He found that he could stay inside the bird in going down to earth again.[13](13/ "tree and pragmatics") He managed to get the young bird to the edge of the rock.[14](14/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he got inside and fastened himself in with his long sash, closed the open hole with strings and rolled off.[15](15/ "tree and pragmatics") The young Thunderbird spread its wings and began to float down through the air.[16](16/ "tree and pragmatics") The man fainted and when he came to he found himself on the edge of a lake in a strange place, so he got up and wandered about till he came on some man tracks which he followed up till he came to two men and asked them where he was.[17](17/ "tree and pragmatics") They told him where he was and the name of the place, and then he knew which way to go to reach his own camp.[18](18/ "tree and pragmatics") When he got near his own camp he saw that the place looked very old anyway.[19](19/ "tree and pragmatics") He went nearer and got to the door and called “Who’s in there?”[20](20/ "tree and pragmatics") Some one inside told him to “come in.”[21](21/ "tree and pragmatics") Inside he saw a very old lady.[22](22/ "tree and pragmatics") He thought “this can’t be my wife, she’s too old.[23](23/ "tree and pragmatics") I’ve been only away a few days.”[24](24/ "tree and pragmatics") He asked her “where was her man?”[25](25/ "tree and pragmatics") She said, “A good many years ago my husband had a dream ‘never to walk across the ice of any lake’ and he may have tried to go across some lake at night and was taken by some big bird (Thunderbird) or somebody I never heard of.[26](26/ "tree and pragmatics") Here I have been ever since he went away and nobody knows where he is.”[27](27/ "tree and pragmatics") The man told her who he was and they kissed each other and lived together the rest of their lives.[28](28/ "tree and pragmatics") This shows that he was away a long time, but it seemed short to him.[29](29/ "tree and pragmatics") When on the Thunderbird’s rock he killed only one of the young Thunderbirds.[30](30/ "tree and pragmatics") The other he did not touch.[31](31/ "tree and pragmatics") Notes by G. E. L.—The word “Lady” used here is equivalent to Ogemah­kwee, which means a chief’s wife or daughter, or some female relative of a chief.[32](32/ "tree and pragmatics") This word is also used in speaking of, or to a white lady of quality.[33](33/ "tree and pragmatics") Kissing is seldom met with in stories or tales of their own life by the Indians, so I think it is a modern introduction.[34](34/ "tree and pragmatics") NO. 5.[35](35/ "tree and pragmatics") - ← previous: [Thunderbirds. (no. 1.)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg76755/4/) - next →: [Rat and Beaver Story—wah-zesk and Ah-mic.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg76755/6/) - ↑ back to [Ojibwa myths and tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg76755/)