Now that Gluskonba had done so may things to make the world a better place for his children and his children's children, he decided it was time for him to rest. He and Grandmother Woodchuck went down to the big water. Gluskonba and his Grandmother climbed into this stone canoe and sailed away to an island. Some say that island is in the great lake the people call Petonbowk, others say that Gluskonba went far to the east, beyond the coast of Maine. They say that the fog that rises out there is actually the smoke from Gluskonba's pipe. But wherever it is that Gluskonba and Grandmother Woodchuck went to, it is said that for a time Gluskonba let it be known to the world that anyone who came to him would be granted one wish.
Once there were four Abenaki men who decided to make the journey to visit Gluskonba. One of them was a man who had almost no possessions. His wish was that Gluskonba would make it so that he owned many fine things. The second man was a man who was very vain. He was already quite tall, but he wore his hair piled up high on his head and stuffed moss in his moccasins so that he would be even greater in height. His wish was to be taller than all men. A third man was very afraid of dying. His wish was that he would live longer than any man. The fourth man was a man who spent much time hunting to provide food for his family and his village. But he was not a very good hunter, even though he tried very hard. His wish was that he would become a good enough hunter to always give his people enough to eat.
The four of them set out in a canoe to find the island of Gluskonba. Their trip was not an easy one. The currents were strong and they had to paddle hard against them. The man who owned nothing knew a song to calm the waters and when he sang it the currents ceased and they were able to go on their way. Now a wind began to blow very hard, pushing them back towards shore. But the second man took out some tobacco and offered it to the wind and it became calm enough for them to continue on their way. Soon great whales began to come up near the boat and it seemed as if they would tip the boat over. But the man who was afraid of dying had brought with him a small stone figure shaped like a whale. He dropped it into the water as an offering and the whales dove beneath the surface and were gone. Now the island of Gluskonba was very close, but they could not see it because a fog came up over the ocean and covered everything. The fourth man, who wanted to be a good hunter, took out his pipe and began to smoke it, making an offering of his smoke so that Gluskonba would stop smoking his pipe and let the fog lift. Soon the fog rolled away and they saw the Island of Gluskonba was there before them.
They left their boat on the shore and made their way to the place where Gluskonba sat.
"Kuai!" Gluskonba said. "You have had to work hard to come here to see me. You have earned the right to each make one wish."
"I wish to own many fine possessions," said the first man.
"My wish is to be taller than any other man," said the second.
"I want to live longer than any man," said the third.
"My desire is not so much for myself," said the fourth man. "I want to be a good enough hunter to provide food for my family and my people."
Gluskonba looked at the fourth man and smiled. Then he took out four pouches and gave one to each of the men. "In these you will find what you want. But no not open them before you get home and in your own lodge."
The men all agreed and went back to their canoe. They crossed the waters and reached the land. Then each of them started on his own way home. The first man, who wanted many possessions, took the canoe, which had belonged to the one who wanted to live longer than any man.
"Take this to go home in," said the man who wanted to live long, "I am going to live forever, so it will be easy for me to get another canoe."
As the man who wanted many possessions paddled along he thought about all that he would have. He would have fine clothing of buckskin, he would have ornaments made of shells and bright stones, he would have stone axes and finely made weapons, he would have a beautiful lodge to live in. As he thought of all the things he would have, he grew more and more anxious to see them. Finally, he could wait no longer.
"It will not hurt anything if I just peek inside this pouch," he said. Then he opened it just a crack to look inside. As soon as he did so all kinds of things began to pour out of the pouch. Moccasins and shirts, necklaces and wampaum belts, axes and spears and bows and arrows. The man tried to close the pouch but he could not do so. The things came pouring out and filled the canoe, covering the man. They were so heavy that the canoe sank and the man, tangled in all his possessions, sank with them and drowned.
The second man, who wanted to be taller than all others, had walked along for only a short time before he, too, became curious. He stopped on top of a high ridge and took out the pouch. "How can this make me taller?" he said. "Perhaps there is some kind of magic ointment in here that I can rub on myself to make me grow. There would be nothing wrong with trying out just a little of it before I get home." Then he opened the pouch. As soon as he did so he was transformed into a pine, the tallest of the trees. To this day the pines stand taller than all others, growing on the high ridges, and in the wind you may hear them whispering, bragging about their height, taller than all men.
The third man, too, did not go far before he became curious. "If I am going to live forever," he said, "then nothing will be able to hurt me. Thus there is not reason why I should not open this pouch." He opened it up. As soon as he did so he turned into a great boulder, one which would stand unchanged for thousands of seasons, longer than the life of any man.
The fourth man, though, did not think of himself as he traveled home. He had further to go than the others, but he did not stop. "Soon," he said to himself, "I will be able to feed my people." He went straight to his lodge and when he got inside he opened the pouch. But there was nothing inside it. Yet as he sat there, holding the open pouch, there came into his mind a great understanding. He realized the ways he must proceed to hunt animals. He began to understand how to prepare himself for a hunt and how to show the animals respect so that they would always allow him to hunt. It seemed he could hear someone speaking to him, more than one person. Then he realized what he was hearing. He was hearing the voices of the animals themselves, telling him about their ways. From that day on he was the best hunter among the people. He never took more game than was needed, yet he always provided enough to feed his people. His was truly the best of the gifts given by Gluskonba.
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