Hocąk Text — Hare Burns His Buttocks [incomplete]

narrated by Jacob Russell

interlinear translation by Richard L. Dieterle

The MS is a phonetic text with all diacritical marks in place, written in a very clear hand, probably by Oliver LaMère, who is listed as the (prospective) translator. The text is untranslated. It is double-spaced in order allow the insertion of an interlinear translation. There are six such lines to a page, and the text takes up only about a half page of space. Each page is numbered by twos, suggesting that the missing page was intended to be devoted to an English translation.

Brackets '[ ]' indicate uncertain translations.

English Translation

 

p. 55 —
Haínegi žigé tekjéną. Éja
The next morning again he started off. There

 

 

wahįšgúni gáją, nañgú hoxetéxjį hot'ą́pšguni.
[he had done that] [after], trail an enormous one he came into.

 

 

"Jaxjį́ja wa'ų́jegùni? Žéjuñga horé gi'ųšgúni
"What made this? Now then a place (where the sun sets) he went to

 

 

gáją hainigáją hijá hišgúni.* Hišge eže,
and the next morning there he arrived. Also he said,

*page 57 follows this word, but that page starts with "-gùni".

 

 

"Ásge žejuñga žegųhó!" wagešgúni. "Ną́na
"So now then now hó!" he said to her. "The wood

 

 

stówaragi pinána. Péjera ta-éra keregi
to gather them in it is good. The fire if you keep it burning

 

 

pinána." Žéjuñga hąhéžą nana ną́ciñxjį
it is good." Now then one night the wood [she intensely wished]

 

 

stówa hišgúni. Žegų roháñxjį stohíže.
to be gathered up. Now very much had been gathered.

 

 

Égi wagešgúniže, "Hinúñgeniñgenàñka," wešgúniže, "žegu-oišípjį
Then she said to him, "Little grandson," she said to him, "thus always

 

 

p. 59 —

 

péjera hot'ų́kereàje," higéže. Ásge hocinc´niñgenòñka
the fire keep it fired up," she said to him. So that young man

 

 

žesgé hiže. Higų́ pejera roháñxjot'uànañga
in this way he did. Still the fire there is very much in the fireplace and

 

 

žeguo-tazínonbra hañkšíxcį howaígus'àže. Hinúñgenuñka
now, ho! [the flame] up very high it would reach to. The woman

 

 

wešgúniže, "Higų́ jajána nišjų́uáñgiži, horagáje,"
she said to him, "Still any time if you get sleepy, tell it,"

 

 

éže. "Hoji-á." Ásge žeguañké šjųwáne
she said. "Okay." Therefore, then not sleepy

 

 

hiñkínąį higų́ wogírarak. Higų́ hinúñgenuñka
[in order not to become] still he told her things. Still the woman

 

 

žegųhó
now, ho!

 

Source:

Jacob Russell, Stories from the Trickster and Hare Cycles, in Paul Radin, Winnebago Notebooks, Winnebago III, #14, Freeman #3893 (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, n.d.) 55-59. Phonetic text only.