boas] COMPARATIVE STUDY OP TSIMSHIAN MYTHOLOGY 801 



(4 a) Wedge Test 



(28 versions: Kodiak 90; N 133; Tl 119; Tl 4.256; Sk 277; BC 81; Ne 5.198; K 5.136; 



Ne 9.197; K 9.461; K 10.98; Ne 10.365; Ne 11.202; Ne 11.244; Nu 5.118; Nu 



ap 909; Coa 5.67; Cob 5.70; Sts 5.39; Squ Hill-Tout 3.526; Chil 25; Ntl Teit 2.39; 



U 209; Lil 345, 349; Quin 113; Chin 34; Coos > 27) 



The uncle asks the youth to help him get wood. He starts to split a big log, drops 

 his wedge, and tells the youth to jump in. Then the uncle knocks out the other 

 wedges and leaves. The youth rubs the log with a sour cranberry, which causes it to 

 open. He goes home and throws the wood down at his uncle's door, Kodiak 90. The 

 uncle goes with his nephew to split a rotten tree. The uncle drops a wedge and asks 

 the youth to get it. While he is in, the uncle knocks out the brace. The youth cuts 

 it from inside and comes out. He carries one-half of the tree home and throws it 

 down in front of the house Sk 277. K'wexala'lag-ilis takes his youngest brother to 

 split wood. The youth borrows the wren mask. Klwfwulu'lag ilis throws his hammer 

 into the spread tree, and, when his brother jumps in, knocks out the props. The 

 youth puts on the wren mask, and jumps out before the tree closes. He kicks the 

 two halves apart and carries them home Ne 10.365. (These three incidents belong 

 to the story of the man who married among the Eagles.) 



I suspect that the Kodiak version is somewhat distorted. It seems 

 more likely that the red cranberry was intended to make the uncle 

 believe that the juice was the boy's blood. 



The uncle asks Raven to help him spread his canoe. When he is inside, the uncle 

 knocks out the spreading-sticks, and the canoe closes over him. Raven breaks the 

 canoe, carries the halves home, and throws them down in front of his uncle Tl 4.256. 

 Raven At Head Of Nass River asks Raven to clean out a canoe. When he obeys, the 

 canoe closes upon him. He breaks the canoe with his elbows and cuts it up for fire- 

 wood Tl 119. Ts'ak' is sent by his father-in-law to split a tree. The slaves drive in 

 the wedges with their long-handled stone hammers, push Ts'ak' in, and knock out 

 the wedges. They believe they see blood coming out, which, however (as may be 

 assumed), is in reality red ocher. He kicks the tree apart, carries one-half on his 

 shoulders, and throws it into the father-in-law's house, so that the front breaks N 133. 



Dzawada'lalis asks his son-in-law to get wood for making a cradle for his grandchild. 

 The father-in-law throws the hammer into the open tree; and when the youth crawls 

 in, he knocks out the props. Blood seems to ooze out. The son-in-law escapes; and 

 when the old man reaches his canoe, he finds the youth lying down in the bow K 

 5.136. Q !a'neqe £ lak u hides alder bark and bird's down in his armpits. He is induced 

 to crawl into the tree, as before. He lets the alder juice ooze out, which the father- 

 in-law believes to be blood. He blows out the bird's down, which the father-in-law 

 believes to be brains. Q !a'neqe £ lak u puts on the wren skin, hops over the trees, 

 and thus makes it split. He carries the wood to the canoe K 9.461. A second ver- 

 sion is practically identical with the preceding. Q !a'neqe £ lak u escapes in the shape 

 of a wren and carries the cedar home K 10.98. We have another version of the 

 same story. Q!a'neqe £ lak u spits out the juice of the alder bark, puts on the wren 

 mask, and escapes. He follows his father-in-law and gives him the hammer. The 

 same test is repeated, and this time Q !a'neqe J lak u kicks the cedar apart and carries 

 home one-half of it. The father-in-law pretends that he has been going to get help 

 K 11.244. 



Gwa /£ nalalis asks his son-in-law to help him split boards for a house. He throws 

 in his hammer, and the same happens as before. Q !a'neqe £ lak u gets out of the tree, 



i Leo J. Frachtenberg, Coos Texts. 

 50633°— 31 eth— 16 51 



