Native American Legends
The Wren
A Seneca Legend
A boy was once told that he must not shoot wrens, for the wren
is a strange bird, difficult to hit and mysterious in its ways.
One day he went out to hunt when the sun was already beyond the
middle of the sky. He soon saw a wren and although warned he determined
to try his luck in killing it.
He shot arrow after arrow, but no use, he could not hit the bird.
Sometimes it dodged the arrows, sometimes it flew to another tree.
All his efforts were vain.
At last he hid behind a bush and waited till he had an excellent
aim, then he let his arrow fly. It just grazed the top of the bird's
head, scratching the skin. The wren flew away fluttering. The boy
watched till it disappeared behind a log at some distance in the
thicket, then he ran forward quickly.
As he got near the log he heard groans and low cries of pain, and
looking over the log he saw a man lying on the ground, apparently
in great pain. His scalp was gone and the whole top of his head
was covered with blood.
The boy, terribly frightened, ran home and told what had happened.
People hurried back with him to aid the wounded man, but they could
find no trace of him; the wren had flown.
The wren is to this day called "the bird without a scalp."
It had turned itself into a man to avoid being captured while stunned
by pain.
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