s WANTON] TLINGIT MYTHS AND TEXTS 205 



in-law and his brothers-in-law, he was sur])rised at its size. Lastly, 

 he put on the black eagle skin. He went out and watched, and after 

 a while he saw a sea lion a long distance out. He went after it and 

 brought it ashore easily, but, after he had taken it to his father-in- 

 law, he wondered how he had carried it. 



By and by the man felt that his mother was suffering somewhere, 

 and, going along the beach, he found her living in a little house made 

 of branches. He asked her what the matter was, and she told him. 

 Then he said to his mother, "In the morning you will hear some sea 

 gulls. As soon as that happens, get up and go along the beach. You 

 will find a large salmon." The woman did so. In the morning she 

 got up and looked and a very large salmon lay there. She had to cut 

 it up and carry it to her brush house in pieces. In the evening her 

 son went to her again and said, "To-morrow I will get a seal for you. 

 Look for it very early." So she awoke very early, found a large seal, 

 and took up its meat. 



After that her son went to her again and told her that he had been 

 captured by the eagles and was living very comfortably among them. 

 He said that he had a wife who was very good to him and told her not 

 to worry for he would always look after her. Then he said, "Early 

 next morning go and look again. I will try to get you a sea lion." 

 She did so, and found a very large sea lion upon the beach. She took 

 off the skin, dried it, preserved the oil, and dried tlie meat. 



Now the man went to his mother once more and said to her, ^ ' Next 

 morning I will get a whale and leave it down here on the beach. 

 Don't touch it. A canoe will come from our village and find it. 

 While they are cutting up the whale don't go down to them." It 

 happened just as he had said, and when this canoe had carried back 

 the news everybody came down from the village to cut it up. 



As the old woman did not go down to look while they were cutting 

 up this whale, some one said, "Run up to see the old woman." When 

 they came there, they found her in a ver}" large brush house in which 

 salmon, seal, and sea-lion meat were dr^^ing. They were surprised to 

 see how much food she had when they themselves had bareh^ enough. 

 Then everybody ran up to look at her. They had stripped the whale 

 down, but had not taken off the pieces. When they left her house to 

 go down again, the old woman came out and the eagle, which had sat 

 on top of a tree watching, said to her, "Get away. Get away." After 

 that one of the men took a rock and hit her in the face with it. 



Wlien the eagle saw what was done to his mother he flew down, 

 seized the town chief by the top of the head and flew up with him. 

 Then he came down again far enough for a person to seize the town 

 chief's legs and flew round and round the whale. By and by another 

 man caught hold of the chief and was unable to let go. The eagle flew 

 around a little higher up until another seized tlie second man, and so 



