726 TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY [eth. ANN. 31 



carries him up Ts 1, N, Tla, T16. He is told to hold on to the neck of Porcupine Ts 1 

 [to put his nose close to Porcupine's hack; this remark probably belongs rather to 

 Beaver carrying Porcupine through the water; he is told to do so in order to preventthe 

 water entering his nose Tla; Beaver climbs the tree Ts 5, N]. Porcupine puts him 

 on the tree and leaves Mm Ts 1, Ts 5, N. When below, he looks at him from a dis- 

 tance, and tells him to jump down and to shout, "On a stone!" Ts 1 [Beaver does not 

 know how to get down Tla]. Finally the Beaver jumps down, shouting, "On a stone! " 

 Ts 1, N [he falls down and hurts himself Ts 5; he strikes the ground, and his belly 

 bursts Ts 1, N]. Porcupine laughs at him Ts 5 [a Squirrel helps him down while the 

 Porcupine is in his hole with other Porcupines Tla; he climbs down, there/ore the 

 bark of trees looks broken Tib]. Because these two fall out, friends now fall out Tla. 

 Beaver revives, but is sick for some time Ts 1. 



The Skidegate version is so different that it can not very well be 

 fitted into the preceding series. 



After the quarrel between Porcupine and Beaver mentioned before, the father of 

 Porcupine invites all the forest people, gives them food, and asks them what to do. 

 He says that Beaver attacked Porcupine because he had eaten Beaver's food. 

 They decide to make war, but can not overcome Beaver. One day while they are 

 gathering food, they seize Beaver, put him on a tree; he succeeds in getting down 

 again by eating the tree from the top Sk. 



The Ts!Ets!a'ut story is related to the one here discussed, but is 

 quite different. 



Porcupine is on a small island . It rains, the waters rise, then he sings for cold ; and 

 after the water freezes, he goes back over the ice. The Beaver then says, " You 

 must stay at home while the branches of trees are covered with frost." The Porcupine 

 replies, "Henceforth you shall live in rivers and lakes" Tsts. 



The Hare Indians (7) have a story which is only distantly related to 

 this one. 



Beaver and Porcupine are sisters who live on the Mackenzie River. Beaver swims 

 to the western bank, and stays there. Porcupine does not know how to swim, and 

 b?comes angry. She asks her sister to carry her over the waters. A river or lake 

 is formed between the two. Therefore the Porcupine lives in the west; the Beaver, 

 in the east 7.234. 



In Masse t the story is told of Deer and Beaver, and placed at 

 TIa'qo- 



Deer has a skunk-cabbage patch, and Beaver throws trees over the plants. Then 

 Deer digs a trench with his antlers, draining the lake. Deer calls Beaver, and offers 

 to carry him on his back to an island in the sea. Beaver says he has never been in 

 the sea, but Deer says there is much food. Deer puts him on the island and swims 

 back. Beaver asks the Black Bear, Wolf, and Grizzly Bear and small animals to 

 save him. For ten nights he is on the island. Then he calls the North Wind every 

 day. For ten days a black wind comes. The sea is frozen. He goes back, s tops up 

 the trench, and continues to live in the lake M. 



The version Ts 1 ends with the statement that Beaver is swimming about, and Por- 

 cupine calls him again, but he refuses to come. 



To this group belongs also a Jicarilla Apache tale (Goddard, p. 231 ). 



Beaver carries the sleeping ( 'oyote to the center of a lake, and Coyote can not swim 

 back. Beaver forces him to swim, and he reaches the shore half dead. Another time 

 Coyote carries the sleeping Beaver away from the water, and he crawls back with 

 difficulty. The skin is worn off from his hands. 



