1250 ETHNOLOGY OF THE KWAKIUTL [eth. ann.35 



The handsome man stayed with the two sisters. One morning he 

 went out into the woods, and ere long came home with four black 

 bears. The next morning he went out and ere long came home with 

 four mountain-goats. He made a box of cedar-boards to steam the 

 goat's meat, and the sisters made baskets of spruce-roots to carry 

 meat and salmon. One day the handsome man went into the woods, 

 and before long he came home with a large black bear. Oh, they 

 say its fat was four fingers thick. Now they were busy; for they had 

 much meat to dry, and the fat of the bear to try out. The man went 

 to sleep early in the evening, and before daylight he arose and went 

 out of the house. Before noon he came home with four large moun- 

 tain-goats. He told his wife to slice the meat and to dry it with the 

 skin. He asked her to take the wool off, to spin it, and to make a 

 blanket. Then he built a house and a storeroom, which soon was 

 full of dry salmon and of smoked and dried meat. After some time 

 the young woman gave birth to a boy. The man washed the child. 

 Then he stepped on the boj''s toes, and, holding liis Uttle hands, he 

 pulled him up four finger-widths. Therefore the child grew four 

 finger-widths on the first day. On the following day the man 

 washed the boy again. Then he put the child's feet on the floor, 

 he stepped on liis toes, and pulled liim another four finger-widths. 

 Now the cliild had grown eight finger-widths in two days.. On the 

 third day he washed the boy in cold spring-water and then pulled 

 him up one span. Now the boy was able to walk. On the fourth 

 day he bathed the boy again, and pulled him up by two spans. Now 

 the boy had become a young man. 



In winter, when the snow was deep, the man made suowshoes for 

 his son. He told him to put them on and hunt bears on the moun- 

 tains. The young man went out that morning, but he came home 

 without having seen any game. Then his father looked at the snow- 

 shoes. He discovered that he had made a mistake in making them. 

 Therefore he made a new pair, and sent his son to go again. Before 

 he had gone far, the young man saw a bear, which he killed with his 

 arrows. He skinned it, and carried home the skin and one leg. He 

 sent his father to bring the rest. 



Now the mother of the young man spoke, and said, "I think it is 

 time for us to give a name to our son. His name shall be Ex'sokw'i- 

 ^lax"sa ^naxwa hauLlenox" (Prettiest-Hunter)." On the follow- 

 ing day the man went hunting. After a short time he returned with 

 four mountain-goats which he had killed. He told his son that he 

 had seen many mountain-goats on the other side of the mountain, 

 and he sent the young man to hunt them. The new snowshoes 

 enabled the youth to chmb steep mountains and shppery ice. Tlie 

 man also opened a cedar-bark basket which he kept under his arm, 

 and took out of it two objects that looked like snails. One was red 



