404 TSIMSIIIAN MYTHOLOGY [BTH. ANN. 31 



islands (221). When shooting a white, sea otter, the hunter tries to 

 avoid spilling blood on the fur (1.171). 



The canoe of returning hunters or travelers was carried up the 

 beach by the young people of the town (290). 



Eagles. — Eagles were caught in traps consisting of pits in which a 

 man woidd hide. The pit was covered with brush on which a bait 

 was placed. Then the hunter would grasp the eagle by its feet and 

 club it (203). The feathers were used for winging arrows (340). 

 It is also said that when the eagles are fat, their feathers drop off. 

 They are then gathered (225). Feathers are gathered on islands fre- 

 quented by birds (340). 



There is a reference on 253 and 255 to a tame eagle kept by a chief. 



Food-Gathering. — Gathering food, such as shellfish, roots, and ber- 

 ries, is often referred to. Women and young men go out clam-dig- 

 ging (170); boys gather cockles on the beach (N 122). For getting 

 clams, digging-sticks * are used (210) . The custom of placing hemlock 

 branches on the beach for herrings to spawn on is implied (205) when 

 such branches are put into a knot-hole of the house of the dancing 

 herrings and come out full of spawn. Women go digging fern roots 

 (166, 169, 337). Hemlock bark is scraped off by men and women, 

 but it is considered a kind of food that is important only when saMon 

 gives out (193). C'rabapples were picked by the women (240). The 

 young men assisted in this work. The apples were gathered in mats, 

 boxes, and baskets. Women go out jointly by canoe or walking in 

 the woods to gather berries (238, 267, 1.147). 



Food 



The following references to food and preparation of food are found 

 in the tales. Among the fish caught in rivers, the various kinds of 

 salmon are by far the most important. Spring salmon seems to have 

 been the staple food for winter (182, 192 et seq.). Humpback salmon 

 was also dried in great quantities (225). Trout is often spoken of 

 (251). Olachen is of very great importance on account of its oil (66). 

 Among sea food, halibut is particularly important (88, 167, N 158, etc.) . 

 Eed cod and other kinds of fish (168), devilfish and crabs (168), eels 

 (177), sea eggs (63), chitons (166), are also used. Seals, sea lions, 

 and the meat of stranded whales, are considered particularly valuable 

 food (184, N 176, etseq.). Blubber of stranded whales was chopped 

 with stone axes (N 179) . Among land animals, grizzly-bear meat and 

 fat (182), fat of mountain goats (88, 182), porcupine meat and fat (10S), 

 are often referred to. There is only one reference to deer meat (89). 



Among vegetable products, crabapples are mentioned with great 

 frequency (240) . Various kinds of berries were used extensively (182, 

 251, etc.). Fern roots were also gathered and eaten (337). 



i In a note at this place a digging-stick is described as a pole sharp at each end, three or four feet long. 

 Sometimes diving-sticks were used also as spears in war. 



