Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

LITTLE CARIBOU MAKES BIG TALK by LEW SARETT

First Line: BOO-SHOO! BOO-SHOO!
Last Line: HO! HO! HO!
Boo-shoo! Boo-shoo!
Me, Ah'-dek-koons, I mak'-um big talk. Ho!
Me, ol' man; I'm got-um sick in knee
In rainy wedder w'en I'm walk. Ugh!
Me, lak moose w'at's ol',
I'm drop-urn plenty toot'!
Yet I am big man! Ho!
An' I am talk big! Ho!

Hi-yee! Blow lak moose ol' man!
Ho!
Ho!

Hi-yi! Little Caribou him talk
Lak O'-mah-ka-kee dose Bullfrog;
Big mout', big belly,
No can fight!

Ugh! Close mout', young crazy buck!
You stop council-talk,
You go 'way council;
Sit wit' squaw.
You lak pollywog tad-pole:
No can jump-um over little piece mud;
Can only shake-um tail lak crazy-dam-fool!

Keetch'-ie O'-gi-ma', big Presh-i-den',
He got-um plenty t'oughts in head, good t'oughts;

Me, Little Caribou,
I'm got-um plenty t'oughts in head, good t'oughts.
Yet Eenshun Agent Myers all-tam' saying:
"Ah-dek-koons he crazy ol' fool!"
Ugh! He crazy ol' fool!

Keetch-ie O-gi-ma long tam' ago was say in treaty:
"All de Cheebway should be farmer;
All will get from gov'ment fine allotment --
One hundred-sixty acre each." Ho!
Ho! Eenshun scratch-um treaty!

W'ats come treaty? Hah!
Eenshun got-um hondred-sixty acre,
But go-um too much little pieces;
Pieces scattered over lake
Lak leaves she's blow by wind.
In tamarack swamp by Moose-tail Bay
He got-um forty acre piece.
In muskeg and in rice-field,
On Lake of Cut-foot Sious, ten mile away,
He got-um forty acre more.
In sand an' pickerel weed,
On Bowstring Lake, she's forty mile away,

He got-um forty acre more.
Hondred mile away, on Lac La Croix,
W'ere lumber-man is mak' big dam

For drive-um log -- an' back-um up water
All over Eenshun allotment land --
He got-um forty acre more, all under lake!
How can be?'
Got-um land all over lake!
Got-um land all under lake!
For Eenshun be good farmer
Eenshun should be good for walking under water!
Should be plough hees land wit' clam-drag!
Should be gadder crops wit' fish-net
For Eenshun be good farmer
Eenshun should be fish!

Ugh!
I have said it!
Ho!
Hi! Plenty-big talk!
Ho! Ho! Ho!



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