boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 117 



He arose late every morning and scratched his head; and when Ms 

 three brothers carne back from then - morning bath, they laughed at 

 him and gave him the nickname Dirty. 



Every morning when the three princes were bathing in the sea, their 

 uncle would go to them while they were in the water and would whip 

 them with twigs. They were all equally strong. One was not 

 stronger than the others. But the youngest one continued to lie in 

 the corner of the house, right on the ground, without a bed. He had 

 only a ragged deer-skin blanket to wear. When he arose late in the 

 morning, steam would arise from the ground where he had lain. 

 Therefore his three brothers thought that he had wet the ground while 

 asleep. 



The three brothers went bathing all the time, and they became 

 stronger than all the other people. Their uncle made a certain law 

 for them. He said, "As soon as jou come out of the water, go into 

 the woods and try to pull out one of the fresh branches of a spruce 

 tree." The young men did as then - uncle had told them, and tried to 

 pull out the branch without any tools. They went every morning 

 again and again, but they could not do it. 



He, however, the youngest one, Dirty, would sit in the water at 

 midnight in the cold of winter, when the north wind was blowing, and 

 before daylight he would come out of the water, and lie down again 

 in his l^ed of ashes in the corner. Therefore he slept very late in the 

 morning, like a lazy fellow, and his brothers mocked him often because 

 he had never gone bathing once. This young man would not go near 

 the fire soon after his bath, but he just wrapped himself in his old 

 ragged deer-skin blanket, and the steam rose up from his bed of ashes 

 in the corner, because his body was wet from his midnight bath; and 

 tliis is the reason why he slept late every morning while his three 

 brothers went to take their bath. 



When they all gathered around the large fire, after they had taken 

 their bath, they were talking about the branch wliich they were to 

 twist and tear out. Then Dirty said, " I shall go and twist it out 

 easily." They laughed and twitted him, and said, " Oh, you miserable 

 fellow! You will twist and tear out the branch of the fresh tree! — 

 you, who wet your bed in the morning when you are asleep! You will 

 certainly be able to pull out the branch, for you are so full of dirt." 

 They made fun of Mm and pushed him out of the house. 



The young man went to the bay south of their house, where a 

 brook was running down. He was full of sorrow while going up the 

 brook. Then he met a young man whose skin shone bright. He 

 asked him, "Why are you so sad this morning, my dear!" The 

 young man answered, "O supernatural one! my three elder brothers 

 make fun of mo and laugh at me, and they call me Very Dirty." 

 Then the supernatural being rephed, "What do you wish of me? I 



