362 TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY [eth. ann. 31 



first and tried to put them across the place, but they were entirely 

 too short. 



Then he thought that he would kill Nes-balas during the fishing- 

 season; and when all the people had arrived at Nass River, and 

 while during the fishing-season they were, using their fish rakes 

 to catch fish, Haimas's sister, Dzagam-txa-n!e'°x, was very ill. 

 She was a beautiful woman, and one of the Tlingit chiefs had married 

 her. She had left him because he had many wives, and they had 

 bewitched her. Therefore her digestion was disturbed. Therefore 

 Haimas put her alone in one place. In the night four men who had 

 been out in a canoe came secretly and looked through a knot-hole; 

 and they saw that Dzagam-txa-n!e'°x's bowels were disturbed, and 

 the young men were laughing. They went away secretly in their 

 canoe, went among those who were raking in fish; and while they 

 were there one of them said, "Oh, Dzagam-txa-n!e'°x's bowels are 

 disturbed!" So all those who were raking fish shouted, "Oh 

 Dzagam-txa-n!e'°x's bowels are disturbed!" 



Then the proud chief was very much ashamed. He wanted to 

 find out who had started to mock his sister, Dzagam-txa-n!e'°x. 

 They said that Nes-balas's people had done so. Therefore he invited 

 his whole tribe — men, women, and children. He made a very large 

 fire; and he said to his attendants, "Dress my sister nicely. Take 

 my best dancing-blanket and my costly headdress set with abalone 

 shells!" and all his attendants did what he had said. Then he said, 

 "Now take one of my good wide boards and let her sit on it!" and 

 his attendants did as he had asked them to do. They took the plank 

 on which the princess was sitting, and burned her alive hi the large 

 fire. Then he said, "Nobody shall weep for her." And when the 

 princess was consumed, he spat into the fire, and said, "As I destroyed 

 my poor sister, thus I will destroy Nes-balas and all his warriors and 

 all his brothers." Then all his people agreed. 



On the following day they dug a long wide deep ditch inside the 

 door of his house, right across it; and when they had finished the 

 ditch, they sent a messenger to Nes-balas and to his warriors and all 

 the princes. Before it was dark, in the evening, Nes-balas came with 

 all his people and his brothers and the princes of his tribe. They 

 arrived in front of Haimas's large square house; and before they came 

 ashore, the people of Wuts!En-a'luk went forth and had a dance on 

 the seashore. Each of the warriors of the Wuts!Eii-a'luk had a war- 

 knife in his right hand. After they had danced a while, they called 

 them ashore; and the brother-in-law of Nes-wa-ma'k, the second chief 

 of the G'i-spa-x-la'°ts, came down and called this man to his own 

 house, in order to protect him against harm. 



The people in the house were singhig, beating drums, blowbig 

 whistles, and there was an uproar in the chief's house. Two grizzly- 



