810 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 29 



Djila'qons 



[Version obtaiiu'fl by Prof. Franz Boas.] 



Ten men intended to catch iish near Q'a'daso near lo [New Kloo]. 

 They went there in their canoe and caught the tish by means of snares 

 which were attached to the points of poles. One of these men wore, 

 a hat showing a design of a cormorant (k'Ti'lo) belonging to the Eagle 

 clan. Whenever he caught a tish his hat fell down into the water, so 

 that he did not catch any thing more. Finally he grew angry and 

 scolded the water. He took his hat and .said: "I strike your vulva 

 with this hat, Djila'qons." Finally the people went ashore, where 

 the}^ made a large tire, intending to eat the fish. [The name of the 

 fish was Ta'Lat, the charr (or rainbow-trout)]. They roasted them. 

 After a little while a large frog came up to the fire. They took it and 

 threw it into the flames, and laughed when they saw it burn. After 

 a short while there was a clap of thunder, and the frog burst. After 

 a little while the same frog came back. They put more wood upon 

 the fire, and threw the frog into it; but when it was red-hot it jumped 

 out of the fire. 



Now they returned to their village. They saw a man walking along 

 the beach, following them. He shouted: ""When your canoe reaches 

 yonder point of land, one of 3'ou shall die. At the next point of 

 land the second one of the number shall die, until you are all dead. 

 Only the steersman shall reach your village, wdiere he shall tell what 

 has befallen you, and then he, too, shall die." 



After a little while they heard a large man coming, who struck his 

 abdomen, and the sound was like that of a drum. Then they laughed 

 at him. They struck his abdomen with sticks in order to hear the 

 noise. He said: "J wish to help you," but they did not listen to him. 

 He said: "A fire is coming. It is going to burn everything." After 

 a while the}^ saw an animal coming, with a beak like that of a 

 mosquito. 



Another day a few men went out hunting seals. They met a seal 

 which looked up at the sky and said: "This cloud looks as though all 

 the people were going to die. The same thing happened long ago. ' 

 [All these were prophesies of the general destruction of the tribe.] 

 Then the man returned without killing the seal. 



Now the whole town was burned. The fire came from the water, 

 burning everything. All the people were killed. Only a young girl 

 who had just reached maturity hid in a cellar near the doorway where 



