swANT.iNl TLTNGIT MYTHS AND TEXTS 123 



tinned, "are out in the canoe farthest from the beach. Be careful 

 how you use your arrow. Do not point it toward that canoe." 

 When the ohl man was al)out to leave him he handed him the arrow 

 and a bow and said, "Put on your war clothes about midnight. Then 

 stand in front of your house and pretend that you are going to shoot. 

 Stand with the arrow pointed toward 3^our enemies' village and say 

 to the arrow just before you let it go, 'I am shooting you to kill the 

 chief of my enemies.' Then let the arrow go." After that the old 

 man left, saying that that was all he intended to tell him. 



The chief did everything just as he had been directed. At mid- 

 night he put on his war clothes and said to his sister, "You start the 

 the war song, and let my niece go to the drum." Then he took the 

 position the old man had told him and shot the arrow saying, "Lodge 

 in the heart of my enemies' chief." lie shot, and in the morning the 

 people of that village saw that the chief was dead. They thought 

 that he had died of heart disease, but, when the}^ examined his body, 

 they found the small arrow sticking into his heart. Then they cut 

 this out and began asking one another, " Wliere has this arrow come 

 from? Wliat tribe does it belong to?" So they sent for the old man 

 who had made it and, as he was- examining it, he said, "I won<ler to 

 what j^lace this belongs." Just then it flew out of his hand, and he 

 said, "Run out and see what it is going to say." So all ran outside, 

 and the arrow flew u]) and down in the sky saying "Nu'xgayu." 

 This is the Tsimshian name of an animal, but the old man made it 

 indicate by that the village from which it came. After th<it it went 

 across to their enemies' town. Now, when they saw this, they got 

 into their canoes and went over to fight. As soon as the canoes had 

 gotten around his house the chief said, "1 am not afraid to be killed 

 by you, because I know that you are all from a high family." Then 

 he again had his sister sing the war song and his niece beat the drum, 

 and he acted as the old man had directed him. Just before he came 

 out he threw out ashes which looked like smoke and concealed his 

 movements. In the midst of this he came out and shot the arrow 

 tow^ard their canoes, which passed through every man in four of 

 them. Then it came back to him, and he shot it through four more 

 canoe loads. Those who were left went home. 



The day after this still more came to fight him with like result, but 

 the next time he made a mistake, shot toward the canoe which con- 

 tained the old man's relations, and killed all of them. Then the 

 arrow flew back to the old man, who sent it at the chief for whom he 

 had made it, and killed him. 



Now the chief's sister put on her brother's war clothes, while her 

 daughter sang the song and drummed. With the arrow which had 

 traveled back to her, she began killing off her enemies just as her 

 brother had done. So the people made fun of the old man, saying. 



