boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 241 



natural spirit who lives at the foot of Mount K-xamin, whose son 

 married the young woman. 



The following day they went down to their camp, and they had 

 ten large hoxes filled with crab apples mixed with grease. 



On the following day the supernatural being came down to his 

 wife, and said to her, "My parents want to see my child for a while." 

 The young woman said, "Oh, must it be? I am afraid he will cry 

 when he is there." Then the supernatural being said, "No, not so. 

 My father will make a cradle for him." Therefore she let him have 

 the child. The supernatural being said, "Come up to the foot of 

 Mount K-xamin after two days, and stay a little below the high rock. 

 There you shall have your child again." Then he went away with 

 the child. After two days she said to her parents, "Take some elk 

 skins and red ocher and eagle down, and let us go up to the foot of 

 Mount K-xamin to see my child which his father took away two days 

 ago!" They took a canoe and went up the river to the foot of 

 Mount K-xamin. As soon as they arrived, a nice carved cradle 

 came down on the water right to the foot of the high rock, and a 

 sweet lullaby was heard in the mountain, and a live cradle was rolled 

 along by the waves of the river, whde the echo of the supernatural 

 lullaby was heard on the river and on the mountain. The child was 

 sound asleep in the cradle, and they learned the supernatural lullaby 

 while the live cradle went up and down on the waves of the river. 



As soon as the lullaby reused, the live cradle came right toward the 

 canoe. Then the young woman heard her husband's voice, saying, 

 "Take him!" The young woman took up the cradle; and the old 

 chief took two elk skins, and said, "I present these elk skins to you, 

 for you made my grandchild's carved cradle." He threw them on 

 the water, and the two elk skins went down; and he threw red ocher 

 and eagle down into the water, which also went down. 



Before the people went home to their village, the supernatural 

 being said to his wife, "This year you may go home with the rest of 

 your father's people, and I will still be with you and help you. Let 

 no one marry you. I shall slay the woman who married your 

 former husband." Then he went away. 



The boy grew up rapidly and came to be a youth. One day they 

 moved to their home, but the chief did not camp with his nephew. 

 There were many people in the young chief's camp. They were 

 always merry. Before they arrived at home, the chief's new wife 

 took a good-sized canoe with some slaves, and went ahead of all the 

 canoes, full of joy. While they were on their way, a great many 

 kdler whales came up, and one of them jumped on the canoe in 

 which the new wife of the young chief was. It capsized, and she 

 was drowned together with some slaves, and the young chief was in 

 deep sorrow, and mourned for the death of his new wife. At last 

 50633°— 31 eth— 16 16 



