SOCIAL LIFE AMONG INDIAN TRIBES 27 



kept daylight in a large box until a raven induced 

 him to open the lid. After lighting torches and 

 searching the seashore, the raven returned carrying 

 prickly eggs of the sea urchin, which he strewed 

 before the house of the sea-gull. Next day he made 

 a call on the sea-gull, and found him in bed with 

 his feet full of prickles, which the raven volunteered 

 to take out with a knife. When the operation was 

 in progress, Master Raven said : &quot; You must open 

 the lid of your box and let out some daylight, for I 

 cannot see what I am doing.&quot; So the gull opened 

 the lid a little way, and the visitor continued 

 taking out prickles from the sea-gull s feet. At 

 last the little bit of daylight was exhausted, and 

 once more the raven asked for more light in order 

 to continue his work. Very reluctantly the sea 

 gull opened the lid of his &quot; daylight &quot; box, but on 

 this occasion the raven was too quick for him, and 

 forced the lid right open, with the result that 

 daylight rushed out, spread all over the world, 

 and could not be gathered in again. 



Sea-gull was very much distressed, bitterly he 

 cried, and to-day the Indians say that sea birds 

 flit along the shore, uttering their plaintive cries 

 because of the trick played by the raven so many 

 years ago. 



