Page 67 - Animals of the Sakhalin Region in myths and legends

Upstream of the big, big river, a hunter was sailing in a canoe. He was already
thinking about a lodging for the night when two birds rushed over him with a

whistle and hiss to the water. The moment the white swan-Kli-kun touched the
water, a swift gray bird overtook it. It was a co-peregrine falcon. He was strong
and courageous, but in his youth he made two mistakes at once: he chose an old
swan as his prey and hit him too low above the water.
The bowstring rang, the arrow pierced the swan, he started, screamed loudly
and dropped his head. The hunter took out a swan, then a peregrine falcon.
Sludge began to freeze on the side of the boat, the oar froze, and the feathers on
the tail and wings of the falcon froze.

The hunter moored to the shore, chose a spot, took out a flint, shot a fire. The
peregrine falcon was sitting in the same place. The man carefully and deftly
took him in his hands and, returning to the fire, just as skillfully put him on a
branch near the fire. Warmed by fire, he revived, and his eyes sparkled more
severely. He had already begun to dry out, but he sat motionless, only watching
the movements of the person. Having pinched the swan, the hunter brought a

piece of the swan heart to the falcon. Smelling the meat, the peregrine falcon
quickly grabbed a piece and swallowed it greedily. He grabbed and swallowed
the offered pieces of meat every time more and more boldly and trustingly. Then
the hunter roasted a piece of meat for himself on coals and, having finished his
meal, dozed off by the fire on a badger’s skin.
Before sunrise, the hunter, not yet waking up, suddenly felt a peregrine falcon
descend on his chest and, bending over his ear, hissed something very important
and kind, but incomprehensible. The hissing speech of the bird became more

and more distinct, and the man finally heard: «Falcons know how to pay with
good for good. From now on, all my children and grandchildren and all the
falcons that will live in the world, falling into the hands of a man, will serve
him in the hunt as tame catchers reliably and faithfully! In the spring, get a
flightless chick out of the nest and feed a swan with your heart, and he will be
your reliable assistant in hunting winged game, faster than a swift and a dove,

more agile than an eagle, smarter than a black crow!»
Having completely awakened from sleep, the hunter quickly jumped up
and looked around the circle. Marveling at his sleep, the man shook his head,
touched the branch on which the peregrine falcon slept, and began to get ready
for the journey. In the first spring, the hunter caught a young non-flying falcon
from the nest and fed him, then he learned the art of hunting. Later, other people
also learned to tame peregrine falcons for hunting. But since that time, hunters

began to notice that the wild peregrine falcon does not attack swans, it hits
other birds only on the fly, high in the air, and the killed bird, before starting to
eat, plucks cleanly.

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