Narrated by Vicente L. Neri, a Visayan from Cagayan, Misamis. He was told the story by his grandmother.  
A long time ago, when Bathala, the god of the land, was peacefully ruling his dominions, he had many pets. Among [421]these, his two favorites were the dove and the crow. The crow was noted for its bright, pretty plumage.
 
One day Bathala had a quarrel with Dumagat, the god of the sea. Bathala’s subjects had been stealing fish, which were the subjects of Dumagat. When Dumagat learned of this, and could get no satisfaction from Bathala, he retaliated. He opened the big pipe through which the water of the world passes, and flooded the dominions of Bathala, until nearly all the people were drowned. When the water had abated somewhat, Bathala sent the crow, his favorite messenger, to find out whether all his subjects had been killed. The crow flew out from the palace where the god lived, and soon saw the corpses of many persons floating about. He descended, alighted on one, and began to eat the decaying cadaver. When Bathala saw that it was late and that the crow had not returned, he sent the dove on the same errand, telling the b............