44 iiUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 29 



Tc!lN QA-'lDJlT 



[Told by Richard of Uw Middlo-Giti'ns] 



Beaver's store of food was plentiful. While he was awa}^ hunting 

 Porcupine stole his food. But instead of going- away he sat there. 

 Then Beaver came and asked him: "Did 3'ou eat my food?" And [he 

 said]: "No, indeed; how can the food of supernatural beings betaken? 

 You have supernatural power and I have supernatural power. '"^ He 

 told him he had stolen his food. Then they started to light. 



Beaver was going to seize him with his teeth, but when he threw 

 himself at his face the spines struck him. After he had fought him 

 for a while Beaver went to the place where his parents lived. He 

 was all covered with spines. 



Then his father called the people together. And the Beaver people 

 came in a crowd. Then they^ went along to fight him. And at that 

 time he used angry words to them. Now they pushed down his house 

 upon him. They seized him. Then thev took him to an island lying- 

 out at sea, upon which two trees stood. 



And when he was almost starved he called upon the animals which 

 w^ere his friends.^ He called upon his father. He called upon all of 

 his friends. It was in vain. 



By and by something said to him: "Call upon Cold-weather. Call 

 upon North-wind." ^ He did not understand what the thing said to him 

 [and it continued]: "Sing North songs. Then 3'ou will be saved." So 

 he began singing: "X.une' qa'sa x.une', let the sky clear altogether, 

 hu+n hu+n hun hiin." After that he sat on the rock and, after he 

 had sung "X.unisa' + , let it be cold weather; gaiya'Lisa'+, let it be 

 smooth on the water" for a while North weather set in. The wind 

 accompanying it was strong. Then he began to sing for smooth 

 water. And, when it became smooth, the surface of the sea froze. 

 When the ice became thick his friends came and got him. But he was 

 not able to walk. 



Now after he had been taken into the house of his parents his fatiu^r 

 called all the Forest people. And he gave them food. In the house 

 they asked him why they (the beavers) did this to him. And he said 

 they did it to him because he ate Beaver\s food. Then the Porcupine 

 people started to war with the Beaver people. But the}' did not 

 defeat the Beaver people. After they had fought for a while they 

 stopped. 



After that, while they were gathering food, they seized Beaver. 

 The porcupines did. The}^ were always plotting against him. Then 



