boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 171 



of her daughter who had been lost a year ago, and she saw her 

 daughter there. Therefore the chieftainess cried; but her daughter 

 said, "It is I, mother! Don't cry, and let the people hear you!" 



All the people assembled that night, and she told her story; and 

 she also said that her child had brought her across; and she showed 

 them her child, the little Otter. 



On the following morning the little Otter went out and brought a 

 large halibut, which he put down on the beach. Then he came in 

 and told his mother that he had brought a halibut for his grand- 

 father. The princess said to her father, "Send some slaves down to 

 the beach, for my child placed a large halibut there for you." There- 

 fore the chief sent down his slaves. They went, and brought a large 

 halibut. The chief was very glad, and he loved his grandchild, 

 because he had brought his daughter back. 



The following day the little Otter brought two halibut to his 

 grandfather. So the chief invited the men of his own tribe, and told 

 them not to hurt his grandchild the little Otter if they should see 

 him outside the village, and his tribesmen obeyed. Now, the little 

 Otter brought more fish and other animals every day, and the chief 

 gave a great feast to all the Tsimshian tribes. Only one tribe was 

 not present at the feast. And he spoke to all his fellow-chiefs and 

 all the tribes, and told them that they should not hurt his grandchild 

 when they saw him on the water; and he showed them the little 

 Otter, saying, "This is my grandchild, who brought the food which 

 I served to you, my guests." All the chiefs were very glad because 

 they had eaten fresh fish — halibut, seal, sea lion, whales, and so on; 

 and the Otter would bring all these animals and all kinds of fish. 

 Therefore his grandfather the chief was very rich in goods and pro- 

 visions, for everybody came to buy food from him during the famine 

 of winter. 



It was in the same winter, before the people went up to Nass Kiver 

 for fishing. Early one morning the Otter went around the island 

 where the seals were lying on the rocks; and after he came back, 

 having slain the seals on the rock, he killed one great seal on his way 

 back home; and while the Otter took this large seal in his mouth, 

 four hunters in a canoe came along, and they hit the Otter who had 

 the great seal in his mouth. The bowman shot him and took the large 

 seal from his mouth and threw away the little Otter. 



When the Otter did not come back for two days, his grandfather 

 missed him. Then he sent a canoe with young men to inquire in 

 every village if they had seen Prince Otter; but the people said, "No." 

 At last they came to the village of one chief, the one whom they had 

 not invited when the grandfather of Prince Otter had invited all the 

 tribes and chiefs to his great feast-. They inquired there, and the men 

 of the tribe said that' three days ago they had killed an otter which 



