boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 163 



should awako; and all the people of the whole household were quiet 

 until dusk. Then the chieftainess was afraid her daughter might bo 

 dead in her bed, therefore she sent up one of her maids to see what 

 had happened, and the young girl went up the ladder. When she 

 reached the top, behold! her bed was empty and her box was gone. 



Then the six brothers began to search through the village. They 

 searched in every house and on the hills, among the canoes, and the 

 chief was almost in despair. He sent out canoes among all the tribes 

 of the Tsimshian and inquired for the young girl, and all the villagers 

 said that they had not seen her. 



When they came back with the message telling the chief that they 

 had been to all the villages and found no trace of her, the great proud 

 chief and his wife were sad. The chief cried. Then he ordered his 

 attendants to call all the shamans to find out what had happened 

 to his daughter. Therefore the attendants sent messages to all the 

 tribes of the Tsimshian; and all the shamans from all the villages, 

 male and female, assembled in the house of the great chief. 



He paid each of them, and they took their charms and began to 

 work and dance around the fire. 



The last one of the shamans was a woman. She said to the great 

 chief, "My dear, be of good cheer! Your beloved daughter is still 

 alive. She is in the house of Chief Snail. The son of Chief Snail 

 married her, but she is disappointed, and your six sons may take her 

 home." Then she pointed with her finger to the rising sun. 



The chief rewarded the woman, giving ber a boy-slave. Then the 

 great chief said to his six sons, "Now, my dear children, I desire you 

 to purify yourselves, in order to be successful and bring back your 

 only sister;" and while he was speaking these words, the tears ran 

 down his cheeks, and the whole family wept with him. 



Then the young men isolated themselves for purification. When 

 the days of isolation of the eldest brother were ended, he went up 

 the mountains to search for his only sister, but he failed to find her. 

 When the days of purification of the second brother had ended, he 

 went, as his elder brother had done before. He went; and he had 

 not been many days among the hills and mountains, when he also 

 gave up and came home. When the days of purification of the third 

 brother were ended, he went a little farther than his two elder broth- 

 ers had gone. When the days of purification of the fourth brother 

 were ended, he also went, and went still farther than the elder three, 

 but he did not succeed. When the fifth brother's days were ended, 

 he came almost to the vdlage of the Snails; but he also failed, and 

 came back home without success. 



Now the days of purification of the youngest brother were ended. 

 He went off, taking with him his woodworking tools, and fat and 

 down and red ocher and tobacco, much good food, and blue paint 



