208 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 39 



said the bird, and when lie did so he saw that they were on a big 

 pile of seaweed drifting around far out at sea. Then the bird told 

 him to close his eyes again, and by the time it stopped with him 

 once more he was very tired. Then the bird said again, "Now open 

 your eyes." He opened his eyes and recognized the place well as 

 being close to his own village. 



55. THE DUCK HELPER 



All the people in a village called Ta'sna, "just south of the mouth 

 of the Yukon," once died of smallpox with the exception of one 

 woman and her son. The boy was just old enough to realize what 

 had happened. His mother kept weeping day after day, and it so 

 distressed her son that he went off hunting with bow and arrows and 

 did not return imtil he thought she was through. 



One day he went farther than he realized and on turning about 

 was puzzled to know where the village lay. He walked for a long 

 time in different directions trying to fuid it but in vain. He was 

 lost and had to camp that night. Next morning he began looking 

 again, and he looked all day with no better success. On the third 

 morning, after he had looked about until he was very tired, he caught 

 sight of water through the trees and, thinking it was the ocean, ran 

 quickly toward it. When he came up to it, however, he found it was 

 only ;^ lake. He remained there for some time, living on roots, and 

 afterward continued his journey. Again he traveled all day and on 

 the following morning he again saw water through the woods. Now 

 he felt happy once more, but when he came down to it and looked 

 around, lo! it was the same lake he had left. 



By this time the boy was too tired to walk any more, so he thought, 

 "Well! I might as well stay right here." He covered himself up with 

 moss and went to sleep. Suddenly, however, he was awakened by 

 a voice saying, "Who is this boy?" He looked around but saw no 

 one. He was entirely alone. Then he fell asleep again, and again 

 something said, "Who is this boy?" He thought that he was dream- 

 ing, for, when he looked aroimd, he saw only a black duck far out on 

 the water. 



After this the boy saitl to himself, "Now I am going to sit up and 

 watch." vSo he seated himself against a large bush and, although he 

 became so sleepy there that his eyes kept closing, he would open 

 tliem resolutely and keep on the watch. Finally he got up and went 

 behind the bush. While his eyes were closed, the boy heard the same 

 voice again, but he was not quite asleep, so he opened them quickly 

 and saw the black duck (gax") on the beach. Immediately it turned 

 into a man, who stood looking at him. "W^hat are 3"ou doing here?" 

 said the man. Then tlio boy told him how he had gotten lost. "All 

 of our village people died, and my mother cried so that I w^anted to 



