The Rabbit Became White

Eye of the Eagle an Indian brave was a great hunter. One summer the weather was so hot and dry that all the prairie animals moved away in search of water, and even Eye of the Eagle could find no game with which to feed his tribe. Things got so bad that one day he got into his canoe and decided that he would have to follow the wild animals into the Great North where they had fled.

He paddled and paddled and went so far, that one day he was surprised to find himself in a snowstorm. This, however, did not disturb him, because he knew he could follow more easily on the snow the tracks left by animals. When he found the tracks of a deer, he began to follow them; but the snow fell so heavily that the hunter was blinded and became lost. He came across a brown rabbit and it offered to help him by guiding him back to his canoe. The rabbit’s dark skin stood out clearly against the snow.

In this way, Eye of the Eagle was saved. He was so grateful to the rabbit that he chanted a magic spell which made its fur turn white. This meant that the rabbit could no longer be seen against the snow in winter and so no-one could hunt it again.