THE KWAKIUTL INDIANS. 413 



ou." After some time he came to another lake. Again he swam and 

 dived. When he came up, a seal harpoon came up with him, but he 

 did not want to have it. He was trying- to tind the bird Ma'tEm. He 

 came to a third and to a fourth pond, and after having bathed he knew 

 that he would find the bird. He put on his blanket and went ou. 

 Soon he saw the bird, which was flying ahead of him. He threw off 

 his blanket in order to be able to follow him more rapidly. Suddenly 

 the bird turned and called, "What do you want of me?" The youth 

 replied, "My mother maltreated me. ^^ow I came to find a magical 

 treasure." The bird retorted : " Do you see you mountain "i That is my 

 abode. Let us climb it!" He flew ahead and the youth followed him. 

 When they had arrived at Ma'tEm's house, the bird gave him quartz 

 and other thiugs, the water of life, the fire of death, and the seal har- 

 poon. He put the quartz crystals into the youth's Joints and thus he 

 obtained the powerof flying. He sent him to the mountain Ts'i'lk-impae 

 (feathers on top) in the far north, in order to get eagle down for his 

 dances. The youth started on his journey. When he approached the 

 mountain, it was snowing, hailing, and raining. The people who lived 

 near the mountain keep great fires burning in order to see and to catch 

 everyone who comes to the mountain wanting to get eagle down. But 

 by the help of the quartz the youth iJassed them without being seen. 

 He gathered the eagle down, and thus obtained the power of assuming 

 the shape of a bird. Then he returned to his own village in the shape 

 of a bird. When his younger brother saw the bird approaching, he 

 laid a snare to catch it. The bird put the snare over its own neck and 

 resumed his human shape. He sent word to his father, asking him to 

 clean his house. When this was done, he came home in the evening 

 and danced as Ma'tBm. On the following morning the bird Ma'tEm 

 brought a totem pole and threw it down in front of the youth's house. 



The Me'iLa is a legend which belonged originally to the He'iltsuq 

 and Awl'k-'enox. I obtained the following tale from the Awi'k*'endx 

 regarding its origin: 



A young man named Me'iLa went ten times inside of one year uj) to the 

 sky. On his first visit he found a gull, which he brouglit down. On his 

 second visit he found a puftin ( ?) ; ou his third visit the salmon berries, 

 then a diver (a bird) and the bird xe'xexe. After his sixth visit he 

 brought the bird atE'mkuli. But Avhen he had gone up the tenth time 

 he did not return again. His mother, Leelaiaqs, and his father, 

 Q'omxto-is, mourned for him. Finally they fell asleep. His mother 

 thought that in her dream she saw a beautiful house, but on awaking 

 slie recognized that what she believed to have been a dream was real. 

 The house was near by, and her son Me/iLa was sitting in front of it. 

 She awakened her husband that he might see him. They Jumped up 

 and ran toward the house. But it retreated from them, and tinally they 

 saw that it was in reality up in heaven. Then they sat down and cried, 

 singing "Our sou is iu heaven playing with Nusnu'sElis (the moon). 



