boas] DESCRIPTION OF THE TSIMSHIAN 401 



by the fishermen in their canoes and thrown overboard. After a 

 while they are pulled up again (350). After the halibut hooks have 

 been taken up, the fish are killed by clubbing (92). Then the hooks 

 are thrown back into the water. At this place it is said that there 

 were two fishermen iji the canoe, who distinguished the halibut they 

 had caught by placing them with the head toward the owner. The 

 fisherman had his knees covered with a mat (92). The halibut fisher- 

 man, when going home, will go ashore to take a rest (93). 



In N 111 a supernatural being is described who caught halibut in 

 Ids hands by jumping into the water and clubbing them. 



Fish are strung up on ropes made of cedar twigs: eels (177), sal- 

 mon (N 117), halibut (N 111), are thus treated. 



Hunting. — The outfit of the hunter consisted of a spear, bow and 

 arrows, quiver, hunting-hat, a small root basket, a mat blanket for 

 protection against rain, a hunting-staff, 1 and snowshoes (244, 245, 

 1 .89) . In N 201 only spear and snowshoes are specifically mentioned. 



When traveling on the snow of the mountains, the snowshoes were 

 provided with four points of goat horn on each side, which were 

 intended to enable the hunter to climb (282). Snowshoes were also 

 used for traveling over soft snow (251), over the ice of a lake (252), 

 and by hunters for sliding down over the snow of mountain-sides 

 (142, 145, 1.95). The hunters had dogs that recognized their masters 

 and wagged their tails (282). \ The hunters had hunting-grounds 

 which were then personal property. A hunting-ground for raccoons 

 is mentioned (138), also another one which is the personal property 

 of a man (152, 295). One hunter owned four valleys (108). It is 

 said that a man possessed a hunting-ground for all kinds of animals 

 (244), and that this hunting-ground was inherited by the man's son. 

 Sometimes the hunting-ground is spoken of as belonging to the people 

 of a town. Thus the GitslEmga'lon had their hunting and berry- 

 picking ground on the shores of a lake (27S). On the hunting- 

 ground the hunter had a hunting-hut (108, 139, 245). On 108 one 

 hunter is said to have had a hut in each of four valleys owned by him. 

 Sometimes they would make long trips and discover new hunting- 

 grounds (245). 



When the hunters went to their hunting-grounds, they took along 

 their woodworking tools, traps, and snares (152). Traps were made 

 for foxes, martens, black bears, and grizzly bears (174), but evi- 

 dently also for other animals. They would live in their hunting- 

 huts during the whole hunting-season. After all the meat ami skins 

 had been properly dried, the skins being tied in bundles of ten 

 (159, note), the hunters returned to the winter vdlage (151). 



i In an explanatory note it is stated that the hunting-staffs were from seven to eight feet long and pro- 

 vided with a tip of mountain -go: it horn at 01 nd, and that they were used for walking over sliding snow 



(.282 



50633°— 31 eth 16- —26 



