| By Christopher James Beppo
An ancient Kawatche legend tells of a giant with a heart of stone encased in ice who came from far away and usurped the natives' land for many seasons. No attacker, no matter how strong or cunning, could defeat the greedy invader. After the people had suffered for longer than anyone could remember, one warrior prayed to the Great Spirit to warm the giant's heart. As the Spirit complied, the giant's blood melted and flowed out, forming the chilly Elbow River, and his internal organs were crushed by the weight of his corrupt heart. Thus did the land's rightful owners prevail through patience, not violence.
Today, standing on the broad, flat stone that marks "The Slumbering Place," a Kawatche burial ground supposedly built where the dying behemoth cast out his heart, Professor Joseph Willowbrook likes to tell that tale to illustrate the present-day plight of the Kawatche.
Legally, Lionel Luthor is the civilian contractor appointed by the state to oversee the caves recently discovered under the old Miller property. Since he took custody, Luthor has brought in numerous scientific devices, posted guards at the entrances and blocked access to almost everyone but his own workers.
"Mr. Luthor knows that what he's doing is wrong," expounds Willowbrook. "The caves have belonged to my people for countless generations, and now we
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must beg permission to even go inside them. But I suspect that as in the legend, the time will come when all will be set right again. Whether Mr. Luthor can survive the consequences of his cold-heartedness remains to be seen, but we will wait for that day."
However, some of Willowbrook's followers refuse to adopt his Gandhi-like determination, preferring action to passive resistance. Jeremiah Holdsclaw, a teaching assistant of Willowbrook's and a full-blooded Kawatche, vows to retake what he considers his birthright: "Yes, we are a peaceful, law-abiding people, but sometimes change can only be effected with force. Patience is something only our forbears could afford--our heritage is being ransacked while we stand idly by."
Here is this week's entry from the Ezra Small Project. Further information may be found in the Ezra Small House section of http://www.smallville.net.
yjr tjg'q bgjv fy tenqogy. yjr awg'q nee vswq o awg nee. qson on sjv oq swn qj he. gj fjme rn wgt gj fjme ve. yjr awg'q sewm yjrmnecp qsogb voqs qseom ujoaen ognote yjrm sewt. ledger IV:A:9:iv, 13:v, 15:iii, 20:ix, 21:vi, 23:vi, 25:i, 27:iv, 31:iv, B:1:iv, 4:i, 10:ii, 10:iii, 21:i, 25:ii, 26:xi, C:6:ii, 8:iv, 9:vi, 14:ii, 18:v, 35:iii. D:27:iii, 34:v, 43:iii, 49:i, 49:ii, 49:iii, 49:iv, 54:v, 55:iii, 56:ii, E:1:v, 4:iv, 5:vi, 8:iv, 8:vi, 11:i, 15:i, 15:iii, 30:i, 34:ii, 35:iii, 38:i, 43:iii, 48:v, 72:v, 73:ii, F:10:iii, 11:i, 12:v, 19:i, 28:iv, 40:i, 40:ii, 52:vi, 65:ii, 70:ii, 70:x.
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