550 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1895. 



had the seat of lionor in tlie rear of the house where the seal society 

 is generally sitting. The Kwakiutl sat to the right and to the left of 

 the door. The members of the seal society and the relatives of the 

 host were standing near the door tending the fire and preparing the 

 food. As soon as all the people were assembled, the seals placed two 

 logs in front of the door, over which they laid a plank. The ha'mats'a 

 and two fool dancers took their seats on the plank, thus preventing 

 any of the guests from leaving the house. 



About this time IlryLElitc, the speaker of the Gue/tEla, arose and 

 asked his debtors to pay his debts.' He said: "J^ow I beg you to 

 please me and to pay my humble debts ;^ then calling the names of 

 those whose debts were due. One of the latter arose and promised 

 that all would pay on the following day. These debts had been con- 

 tracted a year before the feast, and therefore became due by this time. 



IIo'LElite continued speaking. In behalf of the seal society he 

 thanked the people that they had come to the feast. He called up four 

 men to distribute eagle down. Then they took up the down, which was 

 placed in four dishes, and put it on to the heads of the assembly. Now 

 he asked the people to sing and to beat time, and four young men 

 distributed the batons. The seals continued preparing the food, while 

 the Koskimo and Na'q'oaqtoq sang two songs each. The bears had 

 their paws on; the fools carried their lances while they were prepar 

 iug the food. One of the bear dancers was being led by a rope which 

 was held by one of the fool dancers, in order to prevent him from get- 

 ting excited and attacking the people. During their songs one of the 

 Na/q'oaqtoq women danced in the rear of the house. 



After they had finished singing, the speaker of the Na'(j'oaqt6q arose 

 and said: "The Kwakiutl do not look proi)erly after the winter cere- 

 monial. But now they shall see that we know well how to arrange our 

 ceremonials." He took off his head ring, called his cousin Qa'snomalas, 

 and gave him the ring, asking him" to go around the fire and to look 

 for someone who had no red cedar bark ornaments. Qfi/snomalas took 

 the ring and went around the fire, turned once in front of the door, and 

 continued his way to the rear of the house. There he put the ring 

 around the neck of his cousin, NE'msqEmk-ala, who had just arrived 

 from the Na'q'oaqtoq village, and who therefore had not taken part in the 

 opening ceremonies, when everybody received his ornaments of bark. 

 As soon as he had received the neck ring, he arose and danced as 



'^a'Xt8'41iL q6qu'na= standing in the middle of the hoase asking f(>r payment of 

 dehts. 



^E'smaeLEu hawa'x'aloL qa s wax'e'daos gfi'xEn la'xEn g'fi'g'im.'ioL MaaniXuitai' 

 Not now I beg you for to please you me to my small {1(^)1 s ISlaaniXuit 



'laoX Q'eq'anqula yfimisoX Tsa'xisaq'a yii'Em xaawisoX La'leLk-'atstodalii'x yuEmisa 

 and Q'eq'anqula and he Tsa'xisaq'a he also La'IeLk-'atstodalax he 



a'dex Le'Ltsls. He'iEm wa'xe. 

 dear Le'Ltsis. That is all. 



In modern speech the first word would he K'c smatLEn. 



