EIGHTH MEETING. 11 



The Council reported the election of J. Ramsey and George 

 Atkinson as Associates. 



Messrs. B. E. Walker, and R. W. Smith were elected 

 Members. 



Mr. A. F. Chamberlain, B.A., read a paper on " Deluge Myths 

 of the Canadian Indians." 



The writer compared the myths of several tribes of Canadian 

 Indians as recorded by various authors, and as heard by him from the 

 Mississaguas of Scuofog. With some of the tribes the Deluge is 

 localized, with others it seems to have a more general character, and 

 with some, no doubt, is completely mythical. The Eskimo myth, as 

 recorded bj^ Petitot, is very simple ; no cause is assigned for the great 

 flood, which covered the summits of the Rocky mountains. Some 

 Eskimo tied their boats together so as to make a large raft, on which 

 they floated safely over the huge waves. The flood was calmed by a 

 juggler or magician throwing first his bow and then his earrings into 

 the water. 



Quite diflferent to this short accoiint are the legends of the Dene- 

 dindjie. In the Loucheux version the Deluge is caused by Etroet- 

 ■choki'en (the ISTavigatoi') rocking his canoe upon the waters of the 

 river. He saved himself by crawling into a huge hollow stalk of 

 grass, encased in which he safely i-ode out the flood, which in subsi- 

 ding stranded his ark of safety on a high mountain. With the aid 

 of the crow, wdiom he first killed and then resuscitated, the " Navi- 

 gator " repeopled the earth. He pierced the side of the pike, from which 

 issued forth men, the crow pierced the side of the loach, from which 

 came women, and the earth was replenished. The Dog-rib tradition 

 is somewhat different. Tchapeioi (the Old One) is the Noah of this 

 tribe. When the flood occurr-ed he built a raft, on which he placed 

 two of each s]3ecies of animals. When all the land had completely 

 disappeared he sent down the beaver and other amphibious animals 

 to dive for earth. The muskrat only succeeded. He came to the top 

 floating on his back, with a little clay in one of his paws. This bit 

 ■of earth Tchapeioi threw into the water and continued to blow upon 

 it until it assumed the proportions of the earth of former days. In a 

 version of a neighbouring tribe the cause of the flood is this : A 

 young man called to a whale to swallow him, which the fish did, but 



