Comment
Recorded from
Fevron'ja Shalugina in 1986. The first part of the tale, relating to the hare, is the most popular tale among the modern Kolyma Yukaghir, and is also known from Jochelson's materials. The hare was a totem ancestor of the Yukaghir Ushkan clan who lived on the Jasachnaja. Its other name was
c'olGorEd omo 'hare people'. See also Text
14. The second part of the tale, which tells how the old man "exchanged" his dead wife for another one, is probably influenced by Russian folklore.
Translation
(15-1) There were an old man and an old woman.
(15-2) They were bringing up the hare as their child.
(15-3) They ate. One day when they ate the old man said the following.
(15-4) Something hurts.
(15-5) "We must kill this hare."
(15-6) The old woman said: "Make some spoons and plates."
(15-7) The old man took his trap and an axe and went to cut down a poplar tree.
(15-8) He left.
(15-9) The old woman stayed with that hare.
(15-10) It went off to slide down the earth wall.
(15-11) It said: "Grandmother, give me grandfather's boots."
(15-12) "Hare, won't you run away?"
(15-13) "No, I won't run away.
(15-14) I won't run away."
(15-15) I usually sleep.
(15-16) Hare, are you there?" The old woman was lying there.
(15-17) "Hare, are you there?".
(15-18) "Yes, I am here.
(15-19) Grandmother, are you there?"
(15-20) The old woman didn't answer.
(15-21) The hare turned to the fire and ran away somewhere. She said: "Hare!" No answer.
(15-22) "Hare!" No answer.
(15-23) Then the old woman ran out and saw: only its boots were left among the willow bushes.
(15-24) That's how it was.
(15-25) The old man came, but there was no hare.
(15-26) So he started chasing his woman.
(15-27) "You have eaten the hare on your own and are now sitting here.
(15-28) He killed his woman.
(15-29) When she had been sewing she had put her thimble in her mouth, and then swallowed it.
(15-30) She swallowed it from fear, when that man killed her.
(15-31) That man came, but didn't find anything in her stomach.
(15-32) He froze her outside and made her mouth look as though she was alive and laughing.
(15-33) Then the old man loaded his wife on the sledge and carried her away on it.
(15-34) Where did he go carrying her?
(15-35) He came to a man who had two daughters.
(15-36) He entered his house.
(15-37) When he entered it, that man said: "Old man, do you live alone?"
(15-38) He said: "Eh, my wife isn't coming inside the house, because she is shy around other people."
(15-39) He had left his frozen wife leaning against the tree.
(15-40) That's how it was.
(15-41) Those two women went outside to bring her into the house.
(15-42) They went to bring her into the house, but what could that frozen woman do?
(15-43) She broke in half.
(15-44) When she broke, that old man said. "My woman's back has broken."
(15-45) The old man started crying and said that they had killed his wife.
(15-46) "You killed her."
(15-47) He said to the other man: "Give me your daughter.
(15-48) Since you killed my wife."
(15-49) So the old man took that woman.
(15-50) He took her and went away.
(15-51) Who knows where he went when he took that woman.
(15-52) Such a sinner was that old man.
(15-53) They went away, but where they live or whether they died, who knows?
(15-54) So tell the people.
(15-55) I don't know either.
(15-56) My grandmother told such a tale.
Glosses