boas] COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY 649 



(2) RAVEN THREATENS TO LET OUT THE DAYLIGHT 



(15 versions: Ts 61; Ts 5.276; Nn 15; N6 23; Tla 5; T16 82; Tl 4.263; Tl 5.313; Hai 

 6.27; ' Ma 329; Mfe 310; Ska 117: Hai Dawson 1.151 B; H ap 885; Nu ap 891) 



This incident appears in the same form in the Tsimshian, Nass, 

 and Bellabella versions. 



The Raven, who is called here Giant, carries the sun box down into our world. 

 He goes down Nass River until he arrives at its mouth, and turns back. A little 

 way up he hears people catching olachen, and asks them to throw ashore some of 

 their catch. They scold him. He threatens them, saying that unless they give 

 him one of the fishes he will break the sun box. After asking in vain four times, he 

 breaks the sun box, the north wind begins to blow, daylight appears, and the fisher- 

 men, who are Frogs, are drifted to an island in the mouth of the river. They are 

 frozen and become stone Ts. 



In Ts 5, which is told after an oral account given by Mr. W. Duncan, the well-known 

 missionary who has lived for a long time among the Tsimshian, Raven visits the Frogs, 

 who live in darkness. He asks them for some food, which they refuse. In order to 

 revenge himself he resolves to procure the daylight. Then follows the story dis- 

 cussed on the preceding pages. When Raven returns, he says to the Frogs that un- 

 less they give him some food he will produce the daylight. They scorn him, saying 

 that the daylight is in the possession of a great chief. In order to convince them, 

 Raven lets them see a little of the light from under his wings. The Frogs continue 

 to scorn him. Then he lots go the sun, day comes, and the Frogs have to escape 

 into the darkness 



The Nass versions are quite similar to the Tsimshian form of the 

 tale. 



Raven comes down with Logobola' at the mouth of Skeena River. He goes up Nass 

 River until he comes to a place where ghosts whistle in front of him. This makes 

 him afraid, and he turns back. Therefore the tides in Nass River change. Going up 

 a little distance, he hears people catching leaves in their nets. Then follows the 

 same conversation as before. After he has four times requested the people to give 

 him food, he breaks the sun box, daylight comes out, and boxes are seen floating 

 on the water. The fishermen are the ghosts Na. 



When he arrives at the mouth of Nass River, he hears people catching olachen. 

 The people refuse to give him food, he opens the sun box, it. becomes daylight, and 

 large boxes are seen floating on the water. He shuts the box again, and the ghosts 

 continue to catch olachen N6. 



The version told by Deans is undoubtedly distorted. 



After obtaining the sun, he tries to get the moon from the same chief. He makes 

 for himself a false moon and goes to the chief's house. The chief, when fishing, 

 usually takes the moon out of the box in order to have light Hai 6. The other inci- 

 dents of this version have been referred to before (p. 644). 



Raven travels about and reaches a large town where people are fishing olachen in 

 the darkness. He asks to be ferried across, and threatens to break the daylight box 

 if they do not comply with his request. The people ask him whether he comes from 

 Nass River, and in order to convince them he opens the box a little, and the daylight 

 appears. The people quarrel with him. Then he opens the box, and the sun flies 

 out. The people, who wear skin blankets, are transformed into the animals whose shins 

 they wear Tla. 



■See footnote 1, p. 644. 



