boas] COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY 721 



Chief Grouse. Txa'nisEm is fed. On the following day the Wolves go hunting. 

 Txa'msEm accompanies two young Wolves, who go up a mountain and throw down 

 the goats that they have killed. Txa'msEm gathers up the game, covers it with hem- 

 lock leaves, leaving out only four or five goats. The young Wolves find the game 

 by the scent and accuse Txa'msEm, who says that he had been intending to protect 

 it against robbers. At the feast given by Cliief Wolf no one speaks to Txa'msEm. 

 He is sent again with the hunters, and the same thing happens as before. He hides 

 the animals on the beach. The Wolves take the game away, and Txa'msEm drifts 

 to Cape Fox on a floating log. For this reason canoes do not upset at Cape Fox. 



(190) TXA'MSEM AND THE CRAB (p. 70) 

 (2 versions: Ts 70; Skd 128) 

 Although the incident of Raven wishing to play with the Spider 

 Crab and being eventually drowned by him is confined to the Tsim- 

 shian and Skidegate, it must be compared with the numerous other 

 incidents where animals whom he treats in a similar mamier drown 

 him. Thus we have a tale of the Devilfish holding Raven and drown- 

 ing him Ne 5.176. 



(211) txa'msem and lagobola' (p. 68) 



(2 versions: Ts 69; N 18. See also Tl 5.318) 

 The second part of this story, the shooting-match between Txa'm- 

 sEm and Lagobola', is confined to the Tsimshian. It has been col- 

 lected only on Nass and Skeena Rivers. 



After the fog contest (see p. 666), Txa'msEm and Lagobola' land and have a shooting- 

 match. They shoot at a crack in a mountain and stake Skeena River against Nass 

 River. They sit down on two stones, and Txa'msEm sits next to the water. As 

 soon as Lagobola' shoots, Txa'msEm squirts water from his mouth and wishes that 

 the arrow may not hit. Nevertheless Lagobola's arrow hits, while Txa'msEm's 

 falls to one side. Txa'msEm insists that he has won, and Lagobola' accepts the 

 situation. By winning Nass River fie brings it about that olachen go up there Ts. 



After the fog contest just mentioned, the two go up Nass River, each in his own 

 canoe. They arrange a shooting-match and sit down on two rocks. They shoot at 

 a crack in a mountain. Txa'msEm puts his grandchildren the Crows near by. 

 Lagobola' places the Canada Jays in the same way. Txa'msEm tells the Crows to 

 carry his arrow to the goal. They do so and remove Lagobola''s. Thus Txa'msEm 

 wins the Nass River, and for this reason the olachen go there twice every year. Txa'm- 

 sEm ordains at the same time that the salmon of Skeena River shall be fat N. 



I am not certain that the two versions are quite independent. 

 Mr. Tate's Tsimshian version is so similar to the Nass version, 

 that I am under the impression that the printed form of the latter 

 was known to him. 



The Tlingit version here mentioned is not identical with the preced- 

 ing ones. It is merely an incident in Raven's contest with the One- 

 Eyed Giant. The first part of the contest is a shooting-match, in 

 which they try to hit the summit of a mountain. The Giant's arrows 

 do not reach there; while Raven uses a bird for his arrow, which 

 flies to the top of the mountain Tl 5.318. 

 50633°— 31 eth— 16 46 



