22. The Widow and Her Daughter

There was a poor widow in a Tsimshian tribe who had a young daughter. All the people moved from the old village of Metlakahtla, going to Nass River for the fishing-season. Then a strong wind blew. against the canoes. They could not go ahead on account of the north wind, which blew against them. They camped often, and this widow and her young daughter could not go on at all. They were left way behind the canoes, but they were still going on; and after all the canoes had left her behind, she camped at the foot of a high rock on a camping-ground. While they were in camp there, there was a severe storm during the night. They built a hut to shelter themselves during the stormy nights and days.

The first night when they were in camp the widow slept on one side of the •fire, and her daughter lay down on the other side of the fire. At midnight some one came in to the place where the young woman was, and touched her, and said, “Shall I marry you?” and the young woman agreed:;? and when the man came to her, she felt that something stung her body. Before daylight he went out again. The storm increased day by day, and the man came every night, and the young woman felt something like nettles stinging her body.

Every morning they found a partridge at her mother’s door, and there was always sufficient fuel for them. One night when he came to her, he said, ‘We shall have a son, and he shall be a great hunter. There shall be no one Like him, neither before nor hereafter, and I shall always be with him.”

On the following morning it was perfectly calm. The widow went on to Nass River, and arrived there the same day when the fish arrived; and after the people had done their work of fishing, they moved back to the old village of Metlakahtla.

After they had been there a while, they moved to Skeena River for salmon fishing. The widow always had good success with the salmon and the berries she dried; and in the fall they moved down to the old town for the winter season.

Now, when the time came, the young woman gave birth to a boy, a good-looking boy; and when the child was growing up, she went into the woods to get more fuel. There she met a young man, who said to her, “I came to visit you and my son. - How is he?”—“Oh, he is a strong and fine boy.’ He said again, “When he comes to be a youth, do not give him too much to eat, but give him often devil’s-club,[1] and let him alae some of the inner bark of devil’s-club, and let him blow this in his hands, and let him rub it over his body after washing, and do not pass the place where I came to you first. I shall be with him, and he shall be a successful hunter in the future, and I will show him how to set traps and how to snare animals. Do not let him marry soon, when he is too young. Keep him unmarried.’

After he had said so, he went away. Then the young woman went back home, carrying dry wood for the fire.

Now, the child grew up rapidly and became a skillful hunter. One time he went to the mouth of Nass River with four of his friends, and they camped at the same place where his mother had camped on her way to Nass River when the young man had come to her on that stormy night. While his companions lighted a fire, this young man went into the woods; and when he went into the thick forest, he saw a man coming down in front of him, who said, “Are you my son?” The young man was surprised at the words of the stranger. He stood there without speaking. The man who met him said again, “I am your father. I have come down to talk to you.” The young man replied, “Then speak, father!” -*I will teach you how to obtain valuable animals by trapping them without shooting them,” and he made a little trap. He showed him how to make it, and also how to make snares and how to bait wooden traps and skin snares: and he told him how many days he would have to observe taboos, and how many days he would have to fast and to wash. He continued, “And you shall eat the bark of devil’s-club: and in the night, after you have counted four days, you shall wash on the bank of a brook and dive in the brook. You shall not wash your body for twelve months; then you shall dive in the stream twelve times, and every time after

doing so you shall go in to a woman. Then you shall get everything you want: but. do not get married as long as you want to get riches, lest. she be not true to you and you have bad luck. Do not marry soon, lest she be unfaithful! Count your days in months and years, and you shall be blessed: but if you lust for woman’s beauty, you shall be poor. I [will meet you once more.” Thus spoke his supernatural father, and then he vanished from his sight. He did not see him any more.”

The young man went back to his companions’ camp. On the following morning they went hunting, and he killed a great many animals. He did all that his supernatural father had told him, and all the animals of the woods heard that the young man was a very good hunter, and he was very successful. He made traps and snares for foxes and martens, and traps for grizzly bears and black bears, and so on: and every time he went out to look at his traps and snares, each trap and each snare had caught an animal, and he became richer than any one else.

Now another year came.[2] Then the time of observing the taboos was ended, and he went up to set his traps and snares, and he made some more; and after he had finished he went home. After four days he went out again to see if anything had been caught, but there was nothing. All his traps had fallen and his snares had been broken. The bait had been eaten out of the traps by the mice. Te repaired them all and renewed the bait. He spent two days working, and then he finished and went home very sad.

After four days he went up again, and he found nothing. All the traps and snares had been broken and the bait was gone. He repaired them and renewed his bait. He worked hard and went home full of disappointment. Early the next morning he went into the woods, looking for devil’s-club, but he did not find any. Late in the evening he came back home; and after he had washed his body, he went up a little hill, and, behold! there was a large tree. He went toward it; and before he reached the foot of the large tree, a supernatural being came around to meet him. When he saw him, he said, “Is that you, my son Tomorrow you shall cut down this large tree, which

will last you throughout your lifetime.” After he had said this, he disappeared.

The young man went home, and early the next morning he went and found the large tree. He went toward it, and, behold! there was a devil’s-club tree larger than any other tree in the whole world. He took his stone ax and felled the great devil’s-club tree; and after it was down, he took all the sap and bark; and when he had collected it, he carried it down to his town and piled up the bark in his little hut behind his house. Then he started to wash his body with the bark of the devil’s-club and its sap, and he ate some to purify himself. He did so for forty days, and at the end of forty days he went hunting again. He repaired all his traps and snares. He went along for four days repairing his traps and snares: and on his way back from repairing his traps and snares, behold! a great Wolverene had thrown the traps and snares out of their places.

Therefore the son of the Devil’s-Club Tree pursued him, and the Wolverene ran as fast as he could; but the son of the Devil’s-Club Tree ran faster; and when the great Wolverene was exhausted, he climbed a large tree, and the man who pursued him stood at the foot of the large tree on which the great Wolverene was sitting. The young man was about to shoot him, when he asked the Wolverene, “Did you break my traps and my snares? If you don’t answer me now, I shall shoot you!” The great Wolverene remained silent. The young man asked again, “Did you destroy all my traps and snares which I repaired so often?”

Then the Wolverene began to cry. The young man said, “Answer me, or I shall shoot you! It is no use crying.” Therefore the Wolverene had to say, “Yes,] I did break your traps and snares.” Then the young man said, ‘Will you give to me as many animals as I have lost through you?” Wolverene did not want to answer the question. He was still crying. ‘Tell me how you became so great and successful in hunting! Tf you tell me, then [ I will let you go; if not, then I shall kill you.” Then the Wolverene said, ‘I shall tell you, and you must let me go.” Wolverene said, “I use devil’s-club bark in my bath every morning, and I eat some.”

The young man stood there; and when the Wolverene had spoken, he ran down from the tree laughing. So the young man pursued him; and when Wolverene was tired and weary, he climbed another tree; and the young man who pursued hin came to the foot of the tree and asked him, and said, “Tell me what makes you so successful! Tell me quickly, or [I shall shoot you!’ Then the Wolverene said, “You shall eat the roots of the floating plants with their leaves.” Again the Wolverene ran down from the tree laughing, and the young man pursued him.

Soon the Wolverene was tired out, and climbed another tree. The young man stood at the foot of it, and said, “If you don’t tell me the truth this time, I shall shoot you right off!” Therefore the Wolverene was very much troubled, and said, “I shall let you know my secret. You must eat a small piece of blue hellebore root; and when you bathe in the morning, use the hellebore roots to rub your body with. Then you will be successful.” But the young man did not believe what the Wolverene told him, and said, “I don’t believe what you tell me now. Tell me the truth, or [ I shall kill you right away!”

Then the Wolverene said, “You must take skunk-cabbage roots and eat a little of them, and use some when you bathe, and rub them over your body, as you did with the hellebore roots.”

The young man had not much confidence, but he let him go once more. As soon as Wolverene had run a little distance, he began to laugh again.

Now, the young man pursued him again. He ran faster than the Wolverene, so the Wolverene ran up a tree, and the young man spanned his bow and had his arrow ready in his hand. He pointed the arrow at the Wolverene without saying a word to him. Now, he said,‘ “I shall shoot you right now.” But the Wolverene said, “Wait, I shall tell you!” but the young man would not listen. He said, “I shall not wait any longer, because you have made fun of me three times.” Then the great Wolverene said, “You shall have my secret now. It is the rotten fern (or qiālu°gᴀn?).” Then the Wolverene began to cry, “Rotten fern!” and he went his way crying until his voice was lost.

Now, the young man went and repaired his traps and snares, and he made many new traps and snares, and he went and searched for some rotten fern (or qiālu°gᴀn?). He found some and ate some; and he used some while bathing in the morning, as the Wolverene had told him; and he came to be a great hunter, more successful than he had been before; and when he went to see his traps and his snares, behold! every one had caught a marten or mink or weasel, and many other good animals. He did so the whole year round, and in the spring he built bear traps, and snares for grizzly bears, and traps for wolverenes and wolves and all other kinds of animals, and he became richer and richer. Many princesses wanted to marry him, and many times he gave a great feast to the people because he was very rich. He remained an expert hunter.

Finally he married one of his uncle’s younger daughters, and after many days his wife had a little son. When the boy grew up, he heard the people say outside, “There is a white she-bear coming down on the ice of the Skeena River!” and the son of Devil’s-Club Tree took his spear and ran down. He saw the white she-bear coming down the river on the ice; but before he was able to throw his spear, the white she-bear kicked the ice, and the man was drowned. The white she-bear was almost drowned too, but she succeeded in reaching the bank. The man went under the ice and died there.