Though so very ugly, there was one faculty she possessed in a more
remarkable degree than any woman of the tribe. It was that of singing.
Nothing, unless such could be found in the land of spirits, could
equal the sweetness of her voice or the beauty of her songs. Her
favorite place of resort was a small hill, a little removed from the
river of her people, and there, seated beneath the shady trees, she
would while away the hours of summer with her charming songs. So
beautiful and melodious were the things she uttered that, by the time
she had sung a single sentence, the branches above her head would be
filled with the birds that came thither to listen, the thickets around
her would be crowded with beasts, and the waters rolling beside her
would be alive with fishes, all attracted by the sweet sounds. From
the minnow to the porpoise, from the wren to the eagle, from the snail
to the lobster, from the mouse to the mole--all hastened to the spot
to listen to the charming songs of the hideous Marshpee maiden.
Among the fishes which repaired every night to the vicinity of
the Little Hillock, which was the chosen resting-place of the ugly
songstress, was the great chief of the trouts, a tribe of fish
inhabiting the river near by.
Pages:
604
605
606
607
608
609
610
611
612
613
614
615
616
617
618
619
620
621
622
623
624
625
626
627
628