422 REPORT— 1891. 



hair with white eagle-down. Warriors when on a war party must not 

 drink more than four monthfuls of water, else they would be killed. A 

 watchman was appointed in each canoe, who sat in the bow. On landing 

 near the village of their enemies they divided themselves into a number 

 of parties, one house of the village being assigned to each. Then, early 

 in the moi'ning, when all were asleep, they rushed up to the village utter- 

 ing their war cry ' wai ! ' They took a stand at the fire which burns 

 in the centre of the house, and if any one of the enemies succeeded in 

 taking up his arms and came out of his bedroom they killed him. Then 

 they entered the bedrooms, killed the men, and took the women and children 

 along as slaves. The heads of the dead were cut off, the houses burnt,, 

 and they returned home singing wai'-songs. The heads which they had 

 taken along were then scalped, and the scalps tied to each end of a pole. 

 When they approached their village one man stood up in the bow of each 

 canoe and swang the pole to which the scalps were attached, and they all 

 sang songs, in which their deeds were recounted. The scalps were 

 valued the higher the longer and fuller the hair. They were used in the 

 Sisau'kH. 



The following tales of war expeditions offer some points of interest. 

 About thirty or forty years ago there was a famine at Bella Coola. The 

 people went overland to Knight Inlet, which belongs to the Tenaqtaq, a 

 tribe of the Kwakiutl, to fish there. The Tenaqtaq made fun of them, 

 took from them the fish they caught, tore the blankets from the backs of 

 the women, and seduced many of them. Finally the Bilqula returned! 

 home. There they held a council and resolved to make war upon the 

 Tenaqtaq. The Tinneh joined them in this expedition. They crossed the 

 mountains in four days. When they approached Knight Inlet they sent 

 two spies in advance, who were to count the number of houses in the 

 village of the Tenaqtaq. Early in the morning they attacked the houses 

 and killed a great many men. The Tenaqtaq could not escape, as they 

 were hemmed in by the river. The Bilqula slew them with knives, 

 lances, and stone axes. They took away the clothes of the women,, 

 leaving them naked, and subjected them to shameful insults in revenge 

 for the disgrace put upon their wives and daughters. Then they burnt 

 the village. 



About thirty-five years ago the Talio'mH were attacked by the 

 Kwakiutl. Originally they intended to attack Nuqa'lkH, but the raven,, 

 according to the narrator, changed their mind, as he always protects the 

 . village of Nuqa'lkn. They came in many canoes, while most of the 

 Talio'mH were at the lake, which is situated above that town, fishing. 

 Four men were in charge of the village, and a number of old men and 

 women had also remained at home. The father of Nusk'Elu'sta, who told 

 me of these events, happened to be out picking berries, accompanied by 

 his wife. He saw the canoes passing by and kept himself hidden. The 

 village of Talio was at that time surrounded by a strong stockade, which 

 consisted of a double row of palisades crowned with thorns. At each 

 corner there was a strong box fastened on the stockade like a tower. 

 Here watchmen were stationed, who were able to shoot at the enemy 

 while being themselves protected. At that time the Talio'mH had only 

 four guns. The Kwakiutl sent out two spies, who reported that the 

 village was well fortified. The Talio'mH had seen the canoes coming and 

 were on their guard. The Kwakiutl thought that they would not be 

 able to enter the village until after the stockade had been destroyed. 



