THE UWʼTSÛÑ′TA

THE UWʼTSÛÑ′TA

At Nûñ′dăye′ʻlĭ, the wildest spot on Nantahala river, in what is now Macon
county, North Carolina, where the overhanging cliff is highest and the river far
below, there lived in the old time a great snake called the Uwʼtsûñ′ta or
“bouncer,” because it moved jerks like a measuring worm, with only one part
of its body on the ground at a time. It stayed generally on the east side, where the
sun came first in the morning, and used to cross reaching over from the
highest point of the cliff until it could get a grip on the other side, when it would
pull over the rest of its body. It was so immense that when it was thus stretched
across its shadow darkened the whole valley below. For a long time the people
did not know it was there, but when at last they found out about it they were
afraid to live in the valley, so that it was deserted even while still Indian country.

 

Source:
Myths of the Cherokee, James Mooney