— 
ON THE ETHNOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA, 539 
after elk-woman and her people had settled there all the game had 
suddenly disappeared, and now the best and keenest hunters could find 
nothing to bring home after,a long day’s hunt. Famine was busy among 
them, and they were anything but happy in their new quarters. This 
state of things had been going on for some time, when one day Raven 
took it into his head to fly across the water and see how the deserted 
Lynx and his family were faring. Greatly exhausted by his exertions in 
his half-famished state, he was glad to alight on the ridge-pole of Lynx’s 
keekwilee-house. Recovering himself he looked round him and could 
scarcely believe his eyes when he saw a chubby child actually playing 
with a ball of precious kidney fat, as if it were of no value at all. Seizing 
an opportunity, when the child had rolled the ball of fat towards him, he 
pounced down upon it and, urged partly by hunger and partly by greedi- 
ness, strove to swallow it whole. But the ball was too big for his mouth 
and stuck in the back of his throat. The child, seeing Raven gobble up 
his plaything, set up a howl, which speedily brought out his mother. Per- 
ceiving what had happened she seized Raven by the neck and forced him 
to disgorge the ball again. Then, giving him a good shaking, she 
demanded from him what he was doing there, robbing the child of his 
plaything. Raven confessed that he had flown over, out of curiosity, to 
see how they were getting on, and, being very hungry, could not resist 
the temptation to swallow the ball of fat when the opportunity was given 
him. ‘But how came you to be so starving ?’ questioned the woman ; 
‘you are surely not short of food over the water.’ ‘Indeed, we are,’ 
responded Raven ; ‘we are worse than short of food, we are all starving.’ 
‘Ah!’ said the woman, ‘you have rightly fallen upon the lot you desired 
for me. Go back to your companions and tell them I rejoice to hear of 
their misfortunes. My husband and I shall enjoy our food the more from 
knowing your stomachs are aching with hunger.’ She spoke thus bitterly 
because Raven’s presence recalled their desertion of herself and child. 
But Raven pleaded so hard for a meal first that she relented and gave 
him as much meat and fat as he could eat, and told him he might come 
over every day and get a meal on condition that he did not tell the others. 
This Raven readily agreed to. When Raven first flew over he was thin 
and poor, but after a little while the generous diet began to show its 
effects upon him, and he grew plump and saucy once more, while his com- 
panions grew thinner and thinner. His condition soon attracted atten- 
tion, and his comrades began to suspect that he knew of some stores of 
food which he selfishly kept to himself. So one day they seized him and 
threatened to kill him if he would not reveal the source whence he 
secured his food. At first Raven was true to his promise, and would 
disclose nothing ; but seeing that his companions were in earnest, and 
would undoubtedly kill him if he hid the matter from them any longer, 
he confessed that he had been going to the old settlement, and had been 
generously fed by Lynx and his wife, who were living in plenty. On 
hearing this they determined to pocket their pride and return to the old 
camp the very next day. In the meantime, while they were making their 
preparations, Raven flew over and told Lynx and his wife what had 
transpired. The woman, on hearing the news, recalled the promise she 
had made to herself, and hastened to stock the food-cellars of those who 
had thought of her in her distress. She filled their cellars with the 
choicest game and fat, but put not a morsel in the cellars of the others, 
Next day, when the tribe returned, those whose kind actions had borne 
