SWAN-TON] TLINGIT MYTHS AND TEXTS 81 



not be afraid." She said, "All right." Then she followed Heron's 

 directions and gave birth to Raven. Therefore Raven's name was 

 really ItcA'k!", the name of a very hard rock, and he was hence called 

 TA'cjlikl-ic (Hammer-father). This is why Raven was so tough 

 and could not easih' be killed. 



Heron and Raven both became servants to Nas-cA'ki-yel, but he 

 thought more of Raven and made him head man over the world. 

 Then Nas-cA'ki-yel made some people. 



All of the beings Nas-cA'ki-yel had created, however, existed in 

 darkness, and this existence lasted for a long time, how long is un- 

 known. But Raven felt very sorry for the few people in darkness 

 and, at last, he said to himself, ''If I were onh^ the son of Nas-cA'ki- 

 3^el I coukl do almost anything." So he studied what he should do 

 and decided upon a plan. He made himself very small, turned him- 

 self into a hemlock needle, and floated upon the water Nas-cA'ki-yel's 

 daughter was about to drmk. Then she swallowed it and soon after 

 became pregnant. 



Although all this was by the will of Nas-cA'ki-yel and although he 

 knew what was the matter with his daughter, yet he asked her how 

 she had gotten into that condition. She said, "I drank water, and I 

 felt that I had swallowed something in it." Then Nas-cA'ki-yel in- 

 structed them to get moss for his daughter to lie upon, and on that 

 the child was born. They named him Nas-cA'ki-3'e} also. Then 

 Nas-cA'ki-yel cut a basket in two and used half of it for a cradle, and 

 he said that people would do the same thing in future times, so they 

 have since referred its use to him. 



Nas-cA'ki-yel tried to make human beings out of a rock and out of 

 a leaf at the same time, but the rock was slow" while the leaf was very 

 quick. Therefore human beings came from the leaf. Then he 

 show^ed a leaf to the human beings and said, ''You see this leaf. You 

 are to be like it. Wlien it falls oft' the brancli and rots there is noth- 

 ing left of it." That is why there is death in the world. If men had 

 come from the rock there would be no death. Years ago people used 

 to say when they were getting old, "We are unfortunate in not hav- 

 ing been made from a rock. Being made from a leaf, we must die." 



Nas-cA'ki-yel also said, "After people die, if they are not witches, and 

 do not lie or steal, there is a good place for them to go to."'^ Wicked 

 people are to be dogs and such low animals hereafter. The place for 

 good people is above, and, when one comes up there, he is asked, 

 "Wliatwere you killed for?" or "Wliat was your life in the world?" 

 The place he went to was governed by his repl}^. So people used to 

 say to their children, "Do not lie. Do not steal. For the Maker 

 (Nas-cA'ki-yel) will see you." 



a See Twenty-sixth Annxml Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, pp. 460 to 463. 

 4943S— Bull. .39—09 6 



