Captain Spott

"The Obsidian Cliff at Rek'woy" (June 17, 1907)

Writing system: no hyphens | hyphens
Display style: paragraph | sentence | look-up

Text identifier: X16
Speaker: Captain Spott
Primary documentation: A. L. Kroeber
Edition: Andrew Garrett, unpublished
Translation: A. L. Kroeber, Yurok Myths (1976), p. 435-436 (myth X16)
Manuscript source: A. L. Kroeber, Yurok field notebook 75, pp. 1-8

Yurok audio:  
| Password required

  1. Kwe-lekw wee-tue see nue-mee 'o hlko'y k'ee neee-gem 'O Sche-gep'.
    Obsidian would actually have been gathered at 'O Schegep'.
  2. Tue wee-tue 'o tek-to'y, tue wee-tue see nue-mee 'wo-'o hlko-yek' k'ee neee-gem, k'ee 'O Sche-gep'
    That's where it stands, that's where obsidian would actually have been gathered, at 'O Schegep'.
  3. Nue-mee chyue, nue-mee chyue te-ma soo-to'l, 'we-sek', Kues tue ko 'o tek-to'y?
    Everywhere, he tried to go everywhere, thinking, Where will it stand?
  4. Tue wee nee-nee yo goo-luue-lo-wee' k'ee 'wa-'aag k'ee reeek-'ew k'ee peesh-kaahl, k'ee 'O Sche-gep' 'o tek-to'y.
    He was carrying his rock around at the sea-shore, the one that stands at 'O Schegep'.
  5. Tue k'ee so-ne-nee, k'ee so-ne-nee me-no-me-nehl tue' so-ne-nee te-ma tek-to'y, kem tue nee-mee wo' pyekw-che-nee ser-ner-yerh kee 'we-tek-to-nek'.
    Like a cliff it was to stand there, but it did not look right as it stood there.
  6. 'We-sek' wee-tue, Kwo 'o le-goh-kue' k'ee neee-gem? Nes-kwee kee nee-kee 'o tek-tee' k'ee 'oohl 'o noh-sue-no-woo'-mek'
    He was thinking thus, How will they make obsidians? It will stand close to where people live.
  7. Tue nes-kwee kee-kee 'o me-ro-ge'y 'woh-kue'.
    If it is close it will be easy to make.
  8. Tue wee-tue mehl ho goo-luue-lee' k'ee ha-'aag, tem lo goo-le-nee.
    That is why he carried the rock, carrying it for a long time.
  9. 'Iee-mokw wo' pyekw-che-nee so-ne'm 'we-tek-to-yek' wee k'ee 'O Sche-gep'
    But it did look right where it stood at 'O Schegep'.
  10. Peesh tue wee-tee' mehl so-ne-nee ne-wo'y ko-lo-nee s'ok-to', mee see 'o le-goh-kue' kee s'ok-top'.
    Then the way it looked was seemingly reddish, because he was going to make it red.
  11. Tue' wee-tue so-ne-nee mehl ne-wee'.
    That is how it looked.
  12. Kwel te-mee lo goo-luue-lo-wee', 'we-sekw, Kues cho kee so-ne-nee tek-to'y?
    He carried it about, thinking, "Where will it stand like this?"
  13. Peesh-tue wee-tue 'o le-see', Chuehl, Weet kue 'o tek-to'y we'y k'ee 'O Sche-gep', tue wee-tee' e-mehl rek-'eee-ne-wor.
    Then what he thought was, Well, it will stand here at 'O Schegep', that is where it will sit.
  14. K'ee nee ya-'aa-go-no hee wohp-'ee 'o ko rek-'eeen, tue to-'o-noh ke-lee he-see wohp-'ee 'o sue rek-'eee-ne-wor ...
    And from these rocks out in the ocean they will sit, four of them, sitting out in the water ...
  15. he-seeerk 'e-mehl te-po'n k'ee 'O Sche-gep' he-seeerk e-mehl te-po'n, mo wee see 'o le-goh-kue' we'y kee s'ok-top'.
    off 'O Schegep' on the shore, when he was going to make it red.
  16. Tue' wee-tue ... tue wee-tue see se-goo hoh-kue'.
    Thus, thus they would have regularly made (them).
  17. Hee mar-kwee see mehl tmeee-goo-lee' mehl hookch-kehl.
    It would have been shot onto the ground with arrow-flakers.
  18. Tue wee-tue see soo noh-se-nee' k'ee 'wa-'aa-go-na.
    Thus the rock would have been chipped off.
  19. He-see mar-kwee mehl tme-goo-lee' mehl hookch-kehl.
    People shoot it onto the ground with arrow-flakers.
  20. Tue weet see soo he-goh-kue' neee-gem.
    So they would have made obsidians.
  21. Tue hee, to kwe-lekw ma le-go'l Woh-pe-kue-mew, kwe-lekw Woh-pe-kue-mew ... kwe-lekw Woh-pe-kue-mew weesh.
    Hee, Wohpekumew is the one who was there, it was Wohpekumew ... Wohpekumew himself.
  22. Wo-teesh swey-ko'm mo kaa-mok-see' yo' weesh.
    He is the one who damaged it when he was disliked.
  23. Tue weesh-to mehl swey-ko'm Woh-pe-kue-mew.
    Wohpekumew damaged ...
  24. mehl hes ke-chee-see mee wo' 'o le-goh-kue' kue kwe-les 'ue-kaa-mok-sek'.
    They do not make them there ... (because) they disliked him.
  25. Tue hee, to kwe-lekw ma le-go'l me-wee-mor.
    Hii, the old man is the one who was there then.
  26. Tue wee-tue mehl mee wo' 'o le-goh-kue' neee-gem.
    That is why they do not make obsidians there.
  27. 'Ap 'o wee-tee' 'e-mehl tek-tee' he-see hehl-kew so-ne-no-'o-pey-ya.
    Then for that reason it stands inland.
  28. 'We-sek', Wee-tue kee so'n hee mar-kwee see mehl tmeee-goo-lee' mehl hookch-kehl.
    They thought, It will come to pass that it would have been shot onto the ground with an arrow-flaker.
  29. He-see mar-kwee see mehl tmeee-gok'w.
    One could shoot them onto the ground.
  30. Tue wee-tue see se-goo noh-see-cheeí, tue Woh-pe-kue-mew sko-wey-ko.
    In that way it would regularly have been chipped off, but Wohpekumew spoiled it.