92 TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY [eth. ann. 31 



After he had done so four times, he placed the dish before TxamsEm. 

 It was full of red and yellow salmonberries, which TxamsEm enjoyed 

 very much. He ate them all. 



Then he thought again that he would do the same; and while the 

 young man was busy, TxamsEm secretly took some of the unripe 

 salmonberries, put them into his left hand, and as soon as he had 

 left the house, he built a house for himself and invited the Thrush 

 to his new home. When his guest came in, he sat down on one side 

 of TxamsEm's house. TxamsEm took a dish, lifted it up to the 

 smoke hole, and put into it the unripe salmonberries that he had 

 taken away from Thrush's house. He held up the dish and said, 

 "Miga, miga!" He said so very often, but there remained just as 

 many unripe salmonberries in his dish as he had put in, and Txiim- 

 seiu's hands were tired from holding up the dish. He placed it before 

 the Thrush, who arose, saying, "You tried to imitate me." Then 

 TxamsEm was ashamed. He sat down in his house. 



(33) txa'msem and cormorant 1 



TxamsEm went on again, not knowing which way to turn. He went 

 toward the sea; and, behold! he saw a house some distance away. 

 He came near, entered, and sat down on one side of the fire. A man 

 was there with his wife. This was the house of Chief Cormorant. 

 The man's wife arose and roasted dried salmon by the fire. She put 

 it into a dish and placed it before TxiimsEm, who ate it all. She uncov- 

 ered steamed halibut and seal meat, put it into a dish, and gave it to 

 TxamsEin, who ate it all. The house of Chief Cormorant was full 

 of dried halibut and dried seal meat. After TxiimsEm had eaten, he 

 said to Chief Cormorant, "Dear chief, let us go tomorrow to catch 

 halibut!" Thus spoke TxiimsEm to Chief Cormorant. The chief 

 replied at once, and said, "We will go tomorrow morning," and in 

 the evening they prepared their hooks and fishing-lines. Night came, 

 and before it was daylight TxiimsEm arose and called Chief Cor- 

 morant. Chief Cormorant awoke at once and arose. They went 

 aboard the canoe, and paddled to the fishing-ground, each with a 

 mat on his knees. As soon as they came to the fishing-ground, they 

 baited their hooks and threw the fines into the water. When the 

 fishingdines touched the bottom, Chief Cormorant had a bite from 

 a halibut at once, and hauled up his line with a halibut at each end. 2 

 He clubbed them and took them into the canoe. Then he threw his 

 fish-line back into the water. Immediately he had another bite 

 from two halibut. He hauled up his line and clubbed them again. 

 TxiimsEm felt very bad because he did not get a bite from the hali- 

 but. Chief Cormorant threw out his line again ; and when his hooks 

 touched the bottom, he had another bite. Then he hauled up the 



' Notes, p. 678. 



2 The halibut-line is provided with a crosspiece, to each end of which a hook is attached.— F. B. 



