548 REPORT OP NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1895. 



ashamed, frieiulsf We do not ueed to be ashamed of what we are 

 doing here in the woods." 



He continued: "Now take care, members of the seal society! put on 

 your painting of charcoal. Take good care of what we are doing in the 

 house; if anything should happen to one of our masks you must get 

 excited. Wa, wa!" 



After their return they were invited by one man of the tribe to a seal 

 feast in which the Na'q'oaqtoq and Koskimo did not take part, because 

 seal feasts are considered a privilege of the noblest tribe, namely, the 

 Kwakiutl. The seal was singed and boiled. Then the skin with the 

 adhering blubber was cut spirally all around the body, and handed to 

 the men who stood up all around the house. They received about a 

 yard of blubber each. Then the host made a short speech; and after 

 the four feast songs were sung, they all fell to. After the blubber was 

 dispatched, the meat was distributed in dishes and eaten. 



In the evening the father of the new bear dancer gave a feast. The 

 Kwakiutl sat in the rear of the house, the Koskimo on the left hand 

 side on entering, the Na/q'oaqtoq on the right hand side. When all 

 had entered, the members of the seal society came in— first the bears 

 dressed in button blankets. They had bears' paws on their hands, put 

 on likemittens. They remained standing in the door and looked around 

 wildly. The next to enter was the Ts'O'nOqoa, who, according to the 

 tradition, is sleeping all the time. She had her eyes closed and attempted 

 to go to the rear of the house, turning to the left, while the customary 

 circuit is to the right. One of the messengers who was stationed in the 

 door took her by the arm and led her to the right. A rope was stretched 

 from the door to her place, along which she walked to her seat in the 

 rear of the house, feeling her way by means of the rope. The next to 

 enter were the fool dancers. While they were going to the rear of the 

 house a loud noise was heard outside. They pretended to be afraid, 

 hid their faces among the people, and hastened to their seats ia the 

 rear of the house. The noise came nearer, the door opened, and in 

 came the killer whales, young men and boys, dressed in blankets and 

 having long carved fins attached to their backs. Some of these consisted 

 of a sheath in which a carved board was placed so that it could be pulled 

 out and dropped back by means of strings, thus giving the appearance 

 of a flu which was alternately lengthening and shortening. The men 

 came in stooping down low, so that the fins stood upright. They blew 

 like whales, turned in front of the fire, and slowly went to the rear of 

 the house, leaving the fire to their lelt, stopping and blowing on their 

 way. After they had made one circuit they disappeared again. Next, 

 a number of people came in, spreading their blankets and imitating 

 motions and voices of ducks. They went to the rear of the house. As 

 soon as all had assembled the people began to sing. Suddenly a man 

 holding his young son on his arms rushed out of the right hand rear 

 corner of the house, ran around the fire uttering the cries of the nu'L- 



