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John Gasper lived near the Snohomish River until he was a boy of about ten. From the time he could understand, his father taught him so he would become a powerful man and live long. One day he went out to a little hill right by the river, thinking that there might be some totem at that place. While there on this little hillside he wondered what to do and where to go next. When about ready to move to the next hill he heard a noise that sounded just like a tree breaking or falling. He hesitated awhile; wondered what to do; whether to go and see what was there making all this noise. Then he heard a heavy breathing sound as if it were some big animal, so he thought he had better go to that place and find out what it was.
When he got there he saw a bear playing on a cedar tree. The bear would jump down, run away from the tree, run back and see how high he could jump up on the tree, continue traveling up to the very top of the tree as fast as he could, then down to the ground again to repeat the same act. John Lay-whah-hud went right up near where the bear was. He though maybe the great animal was showing something that is great, yet at the same time he doubted it for he was nothing but an animal. At the same time he went right up near this tree and as he stood there the bear came, tearing down limbs and bark from the tree, looking very angry. John thought sure he was a goner for a while until the animal spoke the human language. “I am a bear,” he said, “but I can speak any language for I am a great totem. I am glad to see you, my Indian boy. I am now playing all my acts and if you are looking for a totem, I will be with you. I want you to learn all my plays to show that I am a powerful animal. I am an old bear but I am a totem animal and I can outclass any other totem. I can put fire in my mouth, yet it will never hurt me. I can bite and chew any other animal and bleed until they are badly chewed up. Nothing can hurt me. Now I will go up on the tree for another play.” Up the tree he went, tearing off the bark and traveling so fast one could hardly see him go. John watched him closely and as he reached the top he grabbed a great big snake. He held the animal by the tail, which shows that the bear is greater than the big black snake, for he got him by the tail and held the snake down and was ready to eat him up. When the snake disappeared, the bear came down and told the boy that he would be very glad to be with him if the boy would have him. John told him that he would be glad to have him for a totem for that was what he was looking for, one that would carry him safely anywhere he might go.
The bear started singing his tune and showed another act of how he could put fire right into his mouth, chew that fire until it had gone out without hurting him a bit while singing his tunes, the same tunes that John Gasper will sing any time. The great totem bear taught him this tune and John has tried to show the people that his totem is with him. At any big gathering he sings the tunes the great bear taught him and at the same time puts fire in his mouth. After that he really believes that his totem was sure and also believes that he is as powerful a man himself.
The last word the bear said when they separated was “You will be a great man; you will be a powerful man, who will live until you are of old age, for I am a great old bear myself.” Gasper is about 100 years old now. He is a member of the Snohomish tribe and feels that he is going to live for another hundred years.
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