70 TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY [eth.a.nn. 31 



brother!" but TxamsEm replied, "No, let us shoot at the same time!" 

 Lagobola agreed, and they shot at the same time. Before they shot, 

 TxamsEm squirted water from his mouth, and said, "Let Lagobola's 

 arrow fall a little farther over there, and let my arrow hit the goal!" 

 As soon as the brothers shot, Lagobola saw distinctly that his arrow 

 struck the rock, while TxamsEm's arrow fell a little to one side; but 

 TxamsEm said, "I hit it!" Lagobola said, "No, I hit it!" but 

 TxamsEm repeated, "I hit it!" He was very glad while he was 

 saying this. At once Lagobola said, "You won, Brother TxamsEm. 

 Now the olachen will come to Nass River twice every summer;" and 

 TxamsEm said, "And the salmon of Skeena River shall always be 

 fat." Thus they divided what TxamsEm had won at Nass River. 

 Then TxamsEm went down to the ocean, and Lagobola went south- 

 ward to the place he had come from. 



(13) TXA'MSEM AND THE CRAB 1 



TxamsEm went on with his raven blanket which his father had 

 given him, and flew over the ocean. What was he to eat ? At sun- 

 rise he arrived at a sand-spit. He saw a large Crab sitting there, 

 warming himself in the sun. It was very low tide. TxamsEm 

 wanted to kill him, so he flew to the place where the Crab was sitting, 

 and said, ' ' Let us have a game, grandfather ! ' ' Thus spoke TxamsEm, 

 while he touched the back of the Crab. The Crab replied, "Oh, no!" 

 TxamsEm did so several times. When the tide turned, the Crab 

 moved away. But TxamsEm desired very much to have the large 

 Crab. Again he flew to him, touched him on his back, and said, "Let 

 us have a game, grandfather!" The Crab replied, "Oh, no!" Again 

 he flew and touched him on his back, and said, "Let us have a game, 

 grandfather!" Then the Crab was displeased with TxamsEm, who 

 was sitting close to the water. TxamsEm came again and pushed 

 him, and said, "Let us have a game, grandf ather ! " Then the large 

 Crab caught him by the leg and walked slowly down into the water. 

 TxamsEm was scared, for he was in the claws of the large Crab. He 

 said to the Crab, "Dear grandfather, let me go!" but the Crab would 

 not listen to his request, and walked along the bottom of the sea. 

 Soon the Crab felt that TxamsEm was dead, and let go of him. 

 TxamsEm came up to the surface of the water and floated there. 

 A light wind blew and drifted him ashore. Then the tide turned 

 again, and he lay there on the ground. The sun rose up to the middle 

 of the sky and loosened the raven blanket. By and by he opened 

 his eyes, because he had been warmed by the heat of the sun. He 

 arose, and saw some of his feathers that had come off. Then he said 

 to himself, scratching his head, "My feathers have done well enough." 



