SWANTON] TLINGTT MYTHS AND TEXTS 53 



ill" (i. e., that was where he formerly sat). His wife was somewhat 

 frightened, but he talked to them as if they were his own people. As 

 he called out the names of the dead men who had held those seats 

 they would say in turn, "Hade' (present)," and he would pass a dish 

 up to the speaker. 



After they were through eating the chief of the bear tribe said to 

 his friends very plainly, "Do not leave this man fiiendless, but go to 

 him every one of you and show your respect." So they told the man 

 to lie down in front of them, and before they left they licked him, 

 meaning that thereby they licked his sorrow away. They said, "This 

 is because you feel lonely." Then tlie bears started off. 



At that time men from some other town came near, watched the 

 big animals come out and heard the man speak to them as if they 

 were his own friends, but they were afraid to go near. 



22. THE WOIMAN TAKEN AWAY BY THE FROG PEOPLE « 



There was a large town in the Yakutat country not very far back 

 of which lay a big lake very fidl of frogs. In the middle of the lake 

 was a swampy patch on which many frogs used to sit. 



One day the town-chief's daughter talked badly to the fi'ogs. She 

 took one up and made fun of it, saying, "There are so many of these 

 creatures, I wonder if they do things like human beings. I wonder if 

 men and women cohabit among them." 



When she went out of doors that night, a young man came to her 

 and said, "May I marry you?" She had rejected very many men, 

 but she wanted to marry this one right away. Pointing toward the 

 lake he said, "My father's house is right up here," and the girl replied, 

 "How fine it looks!" When thej went up to it, it seemed as though 

 a door was opened for them, but in reality the edge of the lake had 

 been raised. They walked under. So many young people were 

 there that she did not think of home again. 



Meanwhile her friends missed her and hunted for her everywhere. 

 Finally they gave her up, and her father had the drums beaten for a 

 death feast. They cut their hair and blackened their faces. 



Next spring a man who was about to go hunting came to the lake to 

 bathe himself with urine. When he was done, he threw the urine 

 among a number of frogs sitting there and they jumped into the water. 

 When he was bathing next day he saw all the frogs sitting together in 

 the middle of the lake with the missing woman among them. He 

 dressed as quickly as possible, ran home to the girl's father, and said, 

 "I saw your daughter sitting in the middle of the pond in company 

 with a lot of frogs." So her father and mother went up that evening 

 with a number of other people, saw, and recognized her. 



a See story 76. This myth is more often localized at Wrangell, and the woman's name is said to have 

 been Qaitsl'xkli. 



