boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 97 



glad to follow them. They ran as fast as they could, and TxamsEm 

 followed them; but he soon was tired of running, for he was very 

 hungry, and his belly gave him pain. Therefore he was very weak, 

 and walked a long time. Before evening set in, the two young men 

 had left him behind, and TxamsEm camped in the woods, under a 

 large spruce tree. On the following morning, when he awoke, he tried 

 to get up ; but he was very weak, for he had had no tiling to eat for 

 three or four days. When the sun rose up in the sky, a little tomtit 

 was flying about near TxamsEm, who called him. Then the little 

 bird came to him. TxamsEm said to him, " Will you kindly tell me 

 where Chief Wolf's town is?" The little Tomtit replied, "Oh, 

 yes! I will do it. Follow me." TxamsEm thanked him, and said 

 to Tomtit, "Don't fly zigzag when we are on our way, for I am very 

 weak, and my body feels heavy, for I have had nothing to eat for 

 four days and a half." So little Tomtit questioned him, and said, 

 " Sir, where have you been ever since ?" Now, TxamsEm told him his 

 story, and said, " I have been in camp with Chief Grouse — bis family 

 and my family. We went out hunting every morning, and I always 

 killed many mountain goats, and my partner had none. Therefore 

 he was angry with me, and struck me down with lus club, knocking 

 me over the back of my head, and I lay on the ground almost dead. 

 Then he took me by the leg and threw me down the side of a high 

 cliff. He also cut my belly before he threw me down. " 



Therefore the little bird said, "Now let us go!" They went 

 together, the little Tomtit flying all the time, and the big TxamsEm 

 walking slowly after him. Every time the Tomtit jumped, he said, 

 "Tsiap, Map!" all along their way. When he said ''Tslap!" he 

 meant, "This way, old friend!" 



Before they arrived at the town of Chief Wolf, Tomtit came to 

 TxamsEm's side, and said, "Now I will go back home, for I am afraid 

 of the Wolves." Thus he said to TxamsEm. TxamsEm saw the 

 smoke rising from the village of Chief Wolf, and he was glad to see 

 the smoke yonder. He walked on quickly, and arrived at the end 

 of the vdlage. Some young men came out to meet him; and when 

 they reached him, they ran around him, taking up his scent. Txiim- 

 sEm was afraid of them, because they were smelling around him. 

 The young men asked him where he came from and where he was 

 going. He replied, "I just intended to visit Chief Wolf's village, 

 since I promised to come back again, and now I am back here." 

 The young men continued to ask him, "With whom have you been 

 all this time'?" TxamsEm said, "I just want to see Chief Wolf." 

 Then they led him to the house of their chief. As soon as TxamsEm 

 entered, all the people in the house raised their noses because they 

 smelled the bloody wound in TxamsEm's body. Therefore the 

 chief asked him, " What has happened, that your body is filled with 

 50633°— 31 eth— 16 7 



