boas] TSIMSHIAN MYTHS 379 



the tribes speaking all the different languages on all parts of the 

 coast; so they called him Nass Gowagani. 



In the same way it was with Chief LEg - e'°x's nephew. He asked the 

 Tlingit chief Gadunaha' , "What name will you call my Gowagani?" 

 Then the great chief Gadunaha' called all the wise men of the Tlingit, 

 and asked them, "What name shall we call this great Tsimshian 

 prince V So the wise men called him Fine Weather, or Sun, or Moon, 

 or Stars Of Heaven, and everything that is good and kind; but he 

 declined all these names. Finally the great chief Gadunaha' named 

 him Summer Gowagani. Then the prince accepted this, and he was 

 very glad when they called him this name. Gowagani is the name of 

 the peace dance. 



The princes continued to live with these great chiefs. In the fall 

 of the year the Tlingit came back to the village of Metlakahtla, and 

 all the Tsimshian tribes were invited by LEg"e'°x. Chief LEg'e'°x's 

 nephew was head dancer of the Tlingit. At this time they performed 

 dances of happiness. The dancers had their heads covered with 

 down, and they had puffin-beak rattles in the right hand and eagle 

 down in the left hand. The old women held carved canes in their 

 right hands and down in their left hands; and when the last song was 

 sung, each dancer looked up; and when the words of the song were 

 pronounced, they put the left hand over the mouth and blew up the 

 down from the palms of their left hands, so that the down flew about 

 in the house, and the heads of the Tsimshian were covered with it. 



Then the great chief Gadunaha' called the name of LEg"e'°x's 

 nephew: "Great Prince Summer Gowagani, come with your cane!" 

 and Summer Gowagani came forward with a copper in each hand. 

 The great prince Summer Gowagani spoke the Tlingit language, and 

 he placed those two coppers before his uncle, who was seated in the 

 rear of the house; and the two young men who had followed the 

 great prince from Nass Kiver to the Tlingit country were like his 

 slaves. The young princess who gave the great prince to eat came 

 forward, and was given to the chief to be his wife; and many valuable 

 things were given to the chief to atone for those slain in war during 

 past years. 



(Now, the name Summer Gowagani means that no one shall be in 

 soitow in summer, when the birds are singing on the trees, and berries 

 are ripe, and everything is good, when the weather is fine and the 

 people are happy.) 



Then the people of the other side had dances, and Nass Gowagani 

 was the head dancer of the Tsimshian. The Tsimshian had white 

 eagle tails in their right hands, and bags with red ocher were held in 

 their left hands; and all the young women held down in their right 

 hands, and tallow of mountain sheep in the left. 



