TACOMA AND THE INDIAN LEGEND OF HAMITCHOU 



"You remember, Boston tyee," continued Hamit- 

 chou, "that Elk was the old man's tamanoiis, the 

 incarnation for him of the universal Tamanoiis. He 

 therefore was right joyous at this good omen of pro- 

 tection ; and his heart grew big and swollen with hope, 

 as the black salmon-berry swells in a swamp in June. 

 He threw down his 'ikta'; every impediment he laid 

 down upon the snow ; and, unwrapping his two picks 

 of elk-horn, he took the stoutest, and began to dig 

 in the frozen snow at the foot of the elk-head monu- 

 ment. 



"No sooner had he struck the first blow than he 

 heard behind him a sudden puff, such as a seal makes 

 when it comes to the surface to breathe. Turning 

 round much startled, he saw a huge otter just clamber- 

 ing up over the edge of the lake. The otter paused, 

 and struck on the snow with his tail, whereupon another 

 otter and another appeared, until, following their 

 leader in slow and solemn file, were twelve other 

 otters, marching toward the miser. The twelve ap- 

 proached, and drew up in a circle around him. Each 

 was twice as large as any otter ever seen. Their 

 chief was four times as large as the most gigantic otter 

 ever seen in the regions of Whulge, and certainly was 

 as great as a seal. When the twelve were arranged, 

 their leader skipped to the top of the elk-head stone, 

 and sat there between the horns. Then the whole 

 thirteen gave a mighty puff in chorus. 



"The hunter of hiaqua was for a moment abashed 

 at his uninvited ring of spectators. But he had seen 

 otter before, and bagged them. These he could not 

 waste time to shoot, even if a phalanx so numerous 

 were not formidable. Besides, they might be tama- 

 noiis. He took to his pick and began digging stoutly. 



"He soon made way in the snow, and came to solid 

 rock beneath. At every thirteenth stroke of his pick, 

 the fugelman otter tapped with his tail on the monu- 

 ment. Then the choir of lesser otters tapped together 



E 49 



