swANTON] HAIDA TEXTS AND MYTHS 405 



Then the Niiistlnts j)oople l»(>t«aii to live in a fort on the top of S((as, 

 But, altlioui;h they \v(>re afi'aid, the one who oave his canoe to So-.agA'fio 

 lived toward the sea at (xa'-igAM-kiiii." 'V\\o\\ the people of Tela'ai 

 went to war in successive pailies. And thev were on the water in 

 front of the fort. 



Alwa3"s-ready then came out of the smoke hole, and he walked 

 a))out on the roof W{>arin>4' his armor. They shot at him then with 

 arrows. They did not pierce iiiin. He then went back and shot at 

 them in turn. The next time the}' went to war they climl)ed up to 

 the top of the clift'. They tried to roll down stones upon them. 

 These did not come near the houses. The stones all skipped over the 

 houses. And they again went home. 



And, after they had held them besieged for a while, they were strait- 

 ened for food. Then Always-ready told his brother-in-law to make 

 ten bows for himself. And, after he had worked upon them for a 

 while, he finished them. Fine feathers were fastened near the tips. 

 And his bi'other-in-law gave them to him. He was glad to have them. 

 Then he gave up the })ig cedar l)ow he always used in favor of these 

 new ones. 



The people of the town began to dislike him. His sisters and his 

 brothers-in-law were affected with the same feeling, because, on 

 account of him. they were always hungry. 



One day his brothers-in law came in from tishing. His sister gave 

 him the white part of the belly of the halibut they had caught. On 

 account of that he went out tishing with three persons. He took his 

 ten bows with him, and he took his two arrow boxes. But he left his 

 cedar bow behind. 



And on the day after he went tishing, very earh^ they again came to 

 tight. And, as he used to do, one came out on the top of the house 

 and said "'Ha-ha." And when they shot up at him he went in. When 

 the}' again shot down from the fort, one of the floating arrow^s stood 

 on end in the water. They brought it in. From it hung a small 

 stone. Then they handed it to an old man among them, and, after he 

 had thought about it for a while, he said they did that as a sign that 

 he (Alwaj's-ready) was out lishiug. The ten canoes then started 

 seaward. 



Five went out on each side of Xe'na.*^ They looked for him as 

 they went along, and, when they had nearh* met at the end, the}' saw 

 him lying out to sea. Then they went to him. When he discovered 

 them he walked about in the middle of the canoe awaiting them. And 

 when they got near him he took one bow. He broke it. He took 

 another. He also broke that, ^^'hen he had done that for a while he 

 broke all ten bows. His brother-in-law who had made his bows for 

 him had notched the rounded side of the bow under the feathers. 

 All broke just there. 



