302 BUREAU OF AMJ^:RICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bin.L.29 



tins. He dressed liimself up und came in, and lay down in the rear of 

 the hoii.se, wearing" a full killer-whale suit. His titis touched the roof 

 of the house. Then he came out of it, and, as he held it in his hands, 

 he said: "Real dorsal fin. Real dorsal fin. What human beings call 

 in a common wa\' a dorsal fin (%.An). Real dorsal fin." After he 

 had stood around a while, he said: "Human lacings keep sa^ang this 

 about me. They keep saving- that I used to be a human being."" "^ 

 All in the house laughed at him. It was as if things moved the house. 



Now they began eating what the}^ had stirred up. They say they 

 were whales' tongues. Now, when this was over, the coast between 

 Skidegate inlet and House-point^^ was strewn with whale jaws which 

 had floated ashore. The things they ate in the house of Supernatural- 

 being-looking-landward really floated ashore. 



A long" time after that they again l)egan to starve. And there was 

 nothing to eat at Skidegate. Then the}^ took him to Da'x.ua '', and 

 they lived there with him. And they were starving there. Then 

 they gathered edible fern stumps right behind them. Those they 

 ate. They hunted outward and inward.-*" Sometimes one found the 

 body of a coot. They ate all these things. 



One time he performed all night. Then Supernatural-being-look- 

 ing-landward said to him: "Big-tail, have them stop making the little 

 supernatural women living along the shore cry.^^ Say that 1 will give 

 the human beings something." 



And next day he repeated it to the people. "Let no one go any- 

 where. Supernatural-being-looking-landward says he will give some 

 food to the human beings." But still thev" all went out to look for 

 food again up and down the inlet. 



That night he again sang a song for himself. In the night the wind 

 blew in from the sea. At daybreak he stopped singing. The day 

 after that one went out very early. Astonishing! He came in and he 

 said, "Get up quickly. It lies near Eagle-rock. ^'^ Astonishing!" 

 All moved at once. He did not eat of it because he was a shaman. 

 Now they were saved. They stopped starving. 



At that time the slaves at Skidegate starved to death. Then a man 

 of the Seaward-sqoa'ladas set snares at La's t Alan '^^ for cormorants. 

 His slaves alone did not die. Then one tried to set snares near him, 

 and he refused to have him there. He obeyed and went ofl'. He 

 was named Gu'stas. He killed people by means of witchcraft. That 

 is why they did what he told them to. 



After another long space of time had elapsed, Welcome-point's"' 

 son spoke through him. He put words into his song inside of his 

 father's house. He sang to get his father's things he had promised. 

 He was unsuccessful. He sang for the spring salmon his father owns. 

 He was unable to get them. His father was stingy. 



