Once upon a time a gray, old man lived
on the top of a mountain, where he could see glimpses
of the sea. He had a lodge made of birch bark
that shone like silver in the sun.
He had five beautiful daughters, whose
names were Su, Mi, Hu, Sa, and Er.
One day the youngest said, “My
sisters, come and we will go and play near the broad,
blue sea, where the waves beat against the rocks.”
So away they ran out of the lodge and down the mountain
side. They were all dressed in robes of snow-white
foam, that fluttered far behind them as they ran.
Their sandals were of frozen water-drops, and their
wings of painted wind. On they scampered over
valley and plain, until they came to a tall, bare
rock as high as a mountain.
Then the youngest cried, “Sisters,
here is a dreadful leap, but if we are afraid, and
go back, our father will laugh at us.”
So, like birds, they all plunged with a merry skip
down the side of the rock. Then “Ha-ha,”
they cried, “let us try again.” So
up to the top they climbed, laughing with joy, and
down once more they went, nor ever stopped, laughing
like girls on a holiday.
The day wore on till sunset, and still
they laughed and played. The round moon came
up, and by its silvery light they sprang from the tall,
bare rock, and climbed joyously up its side again.
Next morning, when the sun arose,
the rock was no longer bare. Over its stony
side poured great sheets of foaming water, and in the
foam still played the five sisters. They never
reached the sea, and there they still play, giving
to us the beautiful Niagara Falls. Sometimes,
if you look closely, their forms may be seen in the
white foam, but always in the sunny spray you may
see their sandals and their wings.