MYTHS RECORDED IN ENGLISH AT SITKA 

 1. RAVEN « 



No one knows just how the ston^ of Raven really begins, so each 

 starts from the point where he does know it. Here it was always 

 begun in this wa}^. Raven was first called Kit-ka'ositiyi-qa-yit 

 (''Son of Kit-ka'ositiyi-qa"). When his son was born, Kit-ka'ositiyi- 

 qa tried to instruct him and train him in every way and, after he grew 

 up, told him he would give him strength to make a world. After 

 trying in all sorts of ways Raven finally succeeded. Then there 

 was no light in this world, but it was told him that far up the Nass 

 was a large house m which some one kept light just for himself. 



Raven thought over all kinds of plans for getting this light into 

 the world and finally he hit on a good one. The rich man living there 

 had a daughter, and he thought, '^I will make myself very small and 

 drop into the water in the form of a small piece of dirt." The girl 

 swallowed this dirt and became pregnant. When her time was com- 

 pleted, they made a hole for her, as was customary, in which she was 

 to bring forth, and lined it with rich furs of all sorts. But the child 

 did not wish to be born on those fine things. Then its grandfather 

 felt sad and said, "What do you think it would be best to put into 

 that hole? Shall we put in moss?" So they put moss inside and 

 the baby was born on it. Its eyes were very bright and moved 

 around rapidly. 



Roiuid 1) undies of varying shapes and sizes hung about on tlie walls 

 of the house. "Wlien the child became a little larger it crawled around 

 back of the people weeping continually, and as it cried it pointed to 

 the bundles. This lasted many days. Then its grandfather said, 

 "Give my grandchild what he is crying for. Give him that one hang- 

 ing on the end. That is the bag of stars." So the child played with 

 this, rolling it about on the floor back of the people, until suddenly 

 he let it go up through the smoke hole. It went straight up into 

 the sky and the stars scattered out of it, arranging themselves as 

 you now see them. That was what he went there for. 



Some time after this he began crying again, and he cried so much 

 that it was thought he would die . Then his grandfather saitl, " Untie 

 the next one and give it to him." He played and played with it 

 around behintl his mother. After a while he let that go up through 

 the smoke hole also, and there was the big moon. 



a C(. stor^ 31. 



