47. G·it-na-gun-a’ks

A long time ago a hunter and his family lived in his own town. His was soon after the Deluge. The people were all scattered over the world. So it was with this family. They made their home on an island outside of China Hat.

Once upon a time they set out to hunt sea otters, sea lions, and seal. They left their hew town. There were not many people at this time, but only a few, The name. of this chief was Dragging Along Shore (Dzagam-sa’gîsk). They went on many days, but they ‘aught nothing. They were still looking for animals, but they were tired, for. they had not caught anything. Therefore the head men in the canoe said, “Let us turn back to go home!” and they all decided to go back. As they were going along the channel, evening came; and when they came to the foot of a steep mountain, the steersman said, ‘Let us cast anchor here for the night, and stay until tomorrow morning!’ They all consented, and the steersman cast his anchor-stone. Then they all went to sleep in the canoe. There were four men in the canoe. The head man slept in the bow, his two companions in the middle, and the steersman slept in the stern. They were all fast asleep.

When they were fast asleep, about midnight, the hunter in the bow of the canoe was awakened by a noise which he heard around his canoe. Therefore he looked into the water, and saw a beautiful blue cod[5] swimming around the canoe. Therefore the man, Chief Dragging Along Shore, was angry with the codfish, because he could not sleep well at night. He took her up and broke up her little fins. Then he threw her away, and said, “You disturbed my sleep tonight!” Then he went to sleep again. He wrapped his blanket over his head, and soon was fast asleep.

When the steersman had cast anchor, the anchor-stone had dropped on the roof of the house of a supernatural chief which stood at the foot of the steep cliff in the water at the bottom of the

sea. Its name was G·it-na-gun-a’ks. Therefore the chief, Na-guna‘ks, sent his slave to see what was the cause of the noise on his roof; and therefore his codfish slave went around the canoe, and the chief hunter broke her fins.

The poor slave-girl came back to her master’s house weeping, and the chief asked her what was the matter. The poor slave replied that human beings had cast their anchor and dropped it on the roof of the house, and also that the chief had broken off both her fins. She wept bitterly.

Then the chief said to his people, ‘Take the canoe down into my house.’ Therefore they took the canoe down to the chief’s house at the bottom of the sea while the men were fast asleep in their canoe,

While these four men were still sound asleep, the steersman felt a drop of water falling into his eye; so he opened his eyes, and saw that a sea anemone had fallen on them. Then he sat up, and saw that they were inside of a large house. Their canoe was on the highest platform in the rear of the house. Then he saw people sitting around the large fire in the bottom of the house. Then the steersman shook the canoe, and said in a whisper, “Alas! we are in danger.” All his companions awoke, and they all began to cry. They saw a great chief sitting in the rear of the house in front of his fire.

After a while the chief said to his attendants, “Let my guests come down to the fire!” So they brought them down; and as soon as they were seated by the side of the large fire, the Mouse Woman came and touched the chief hunter. She said, “My dear, throw your ear-ornaments into the fire!’” Therefore Dragging Along Shore threw his woolen ear-ornaments into the fire. Then the Mouse Woman took the scorched woolen ear-ornaments, and said, ‘Don’t you know in whose house you are?” He replied, “No, [ I do not know.” Then she said, “His is the house of Chief Na-gun-a’ks. You cast your anchor-stone on the roof of his house last night. Therefore he sent his female slave, because he wished to know what caused the noise up there, and you have broken her fins. She was crying when she came in. Then he sent his attendants and took you down into his house. I advise you to offer him what you have in your canoe, lest you be in danger.” Thus spoke the Mouse Woman, and went away.

Chief Na-gun-a’ks said to his attendants, “Boil some seals, that [ I may feed my guests!’ Therefore his attendants took four large boxes and four large seals. They put red-hot stones into the four boxes; and when the water began to boil, they put a seal into each box; and when the seals were done, Chief Na-gun-a’ks said, “Take one seal to each of the men!” They did so.

Again the wise Mouse Woman came, and said, “Don’t be afraid when they bring you a whole seal! hist open your mouth wide, and you shall swallow it. It will not hurt you. Tell your companions what I have said.” Those three men belonged to the crest of the Killer Whale, while the steersman belonged to the Eagle crest. Then each man took up a pole. They took up a seal and brought it to the guests. One of the men who held the boiled seal at the end of his pole stepped in front of Dragging Along Shore, who opened his mouth; and the man who held the seal took it by the tail; and the chief swallowed the whole seal, beginning at the head. The second man stood in front of the next one, who opened his mouth and swallowed the whole seal. Finally the last man who had a seal in his hands at the end of the pole stood in front of the steersman, and said, ‘Open your mouth!” So the steersman opened his mouth and tried to swallow it; but the whole seal would not go down his throat, because he belonged to the Eagles.

(The other three men belonged to the Killer- Whale crest, therefore they could swallow the whole seal; but the steersman belonged to the Eagles.)

Now, Chief Na-gun-a’ks said to his servants, “Cut that seal to pieces, so that he may eat it easily.” Then they did so.

The men had been there a whole year. Then the other supernatural being who lived on the other side of the sea would often say, “Let your guests come out!’ Chief Na-gun-a’ks loved these human beings who had come to his house. So one day Chief Na-gun-a’ks said to his attendants and to his servants, “I will give a great feast to all my fellow-chiefs in the rocks. I will invite them, and will show them my human guests. After that I will send these my friends to their own home.” His attendants consented, and therefore he sent messengers all over the world to invite his fellow-chiefs, the supernatural beings of the rocks.

The men did not know how long they had been there, and they never felt hungry. Before the monsters came into their host’s house, Chief Na-gun-a’ks said, “Get into your canoe, and you shall see what will come to pass!’ Before they went aboard their canoe, Chief Dragging Along Shore said to his host, “Shall I give you a present?” His master said, “Do so!’ and he presented him with four coppers and the fat of mountain goat, and tobacco, with a box of grease and a box of crabapples and a box of cranberries, also with red ocher and eagle down. Na-gun-a’ks was very glad to have all these presents. His house was full of the things which Dragging Along Shore had presented to him. Chief Na-gun-a’ks sent them into their canoe after they had put away all the presents.

Then the chief commanded that the door of his house be opened; and when it opened, the water rushed in. The house was full of water, and the canoe was floating on the first platform of the chief’s house. Then the waters subsided until the tops of the various kinds of supernatural chiefs of the rocks were seen. Many different kinds of monsters were left dry on the floor of Chief Na-gun-a’ks’s house. The chief showed his guests all these monsters who had assembled from all parts of the country. Some of them looked nice, others curious, still others ugly, and others terrible. Chief Na-gun-a’ks himself wore his own garments in the form of the body of a killer whale, but the body was set all over with horns.

Then Chief Na-gun-a’ks said to his guests, °° My dear supernatural beings, I am glad that you have all come to my feast. My brother, Dragging Along Shore, and his two nephews, and his brother-in-law, Holdamia, came to my house several days ago. They brought me costly coppers and all kinds of provisions. I have kept them here for a whole year, and now I will send them to their old home as soon as possible. Therefore I have called you all. I wish to let you have what they gave me.’ And after he had handed his gifts to all the monsters, he said again, “I” will give him my own garment covered with horns, and my principal crest, the mermaid children going up the river, and my copper canoe, the copper stern-board, and copper paddles, and also my carved house.”

Then all the monsters were much pleased on account of the gifts which they received from Na-gun-a’ks. He said also, ‘TP would advise you, supernatural chiefs in the rocks, let not one of you, my dear chiefs, frighten my brother here, because he pleased us by giving us his provisions and costly coppers; and when you see him hunting, I wish that all of you may help him, so that he may have good luck.” All the monsters of the rocks agreed to what Chief Na-gun-a’ks said.

On the following day the door of Chief Na-gun-a’ks’s house opened, and the water ran in rapidly, running through the open door. Again the canoe of Dragging Along Shore was floating above the first platform of the chiefs house. After a while the water subsided, and a carved room appeared on each side of the inside of the house. One side room was carved with two killer whales, with their noses joined together. It was called Dash Against Each Other. The room on the other side was carved with green seaweed, and there was a copper canoe with coppers and a stern-board of copper and a copper bailer.

Then Na-gun-a’ks blessed Dragging Along Shore, and said, * You shall receive everything you need in the future in your land; but do not hurt any fish, or anything that you may see in the water, lest you be in danger. When you go hunting, offer burnt-offerings. Then you shall have good luck. Come to this place over my house and offer me something, that I may help you right along. You shall go home tomorrow.”

He also said to the steersman, “I will let you have my own hat,” and he gave him a large sea-apple shell with a living person in the center with a face like that of a man, and a good-sized box inlaid with abalone shells.

After he had given his presents to these men, he said, “Now go aboard the canoe and sleep there tonight.” They did as he had said. The men had always slept in the canoe ever since they had been in the house. Early the next morning the steersman awoke from his sleep, and, behold! there was a mountain of foam around the canoe. Therefore he called his companions, and said, “Alas! we are in danger.” They all awoke, and the mountain of foam became less. However, the men did not know how. The foam was changing into a thick tog, so thick that the men could not see one another in the canoe. Then their hearts failed. The steersman, however, encouraged his companions, who were silent from fear: and while they were still silent, they heard a noise like the rolling of thunder. The thick fog vanished, and there was bright sunshine. They looked at one another, and they saw that the hat of the chief in the bow of the canoe was full of all kinds of seaweed, sea anemones, and sea kale (4) of all kinds, and the hats of the other men in the canoe were just like his; and the canoe itself was full of seaweeds, sea anemones, and sea kales. Then the man at the bow said, ‘Take up your paddles and paddle away!” They saw that they were at the foot of the hich cliff where they had dropped their anchor a year before. So they took their paddles and paddled away: but their paddles also were full of seaweeds, and were very heavy because they were made of copper.

Dragging Along Shore said to his men, “Don’t pull the seaweeds off from the canoe, from the paddles, and from our clothes!’ Now they paddled on; and whenever the handles of their paddles touched the canoe, it sounded like a bell. The canoe went as fast as a bird flies, and at midnight they reached their own home.

Early in the morning one of Dragging Along Shore’s elder sisters would come out and go to the east side of the village, waiting for her brother who had been lost the preceding winter. As soon as she came out this time, behold! there was a large monster floating on the sea in front of the village. She saw something that seemed alive on top of it, and it made a noise like a bell, boom!

She ran in and called her husband, and said, ‘Alas! we are in danger.’ Her husband arose and went out. He also saw the curious monster on the water. He inquired, and said, “Who is there?” Then they answered, “Was not a chief lost from here last winter?” They said, ‘Yes.’ Then the men in the canoe replied, -*We are coming home again safe.”

Then the whole village was in excitement. All the people in the village went down to the beach to welcome those who had been lost a long while. Some of the people were afraid when they saw that their clothes were full of seaweeds, sea anemones, and sea kales, and that all kinds of shells were sticking to the canoe, to the paddles, the stern-board, and the bailer, that their root hats were covered with shells and seaweeds, and that everything in the canoe was that way.

Soon they came ashore. Then the young people wanted to take up the eanoe; but they could not, because the canoe was made of copper and was very heavy: and two young men carried up their paddles, which were also made of copper: and when they had carried up everything, the four men themselves carried up the copper canoe, two men at each end.

Now Dragging Along Shore sent messengers to his tribe to invite all his people. When they were all in, he told the story of what had happened to them on their way how they had been in the house of a chief at the bottom of the sea, and how his host had invited all his fellow-creatures when he had given him his presents, and also how his host had given him his own crest. He showed his people a killer-whale hat covered with horns, and the garment of green seaweeds, and the two rooms with carved sides, also the copper canoe and paddles; and he told how Chief Na-gun-a’ks had given his brother-in-law a real sea-apple hat and a carved box-cover set with all kinds of shells, and how they had fed them with one seal each as soon as they had been taken down.

After he had told his story, he asked his people if he should give a great feast and invite all the tribes around them. His people agreed, and he sent messengers around to invite the chiefs.

On the appointed day all the chiefs came to his feast, and a crowd of canoes covered the water in front of his house. Then the head man of the village came out and called them ashore: and when all the guests were ashore, they called them in: and when all the chiefs were in the house, Dragging Along Shore asked every chief to wear his own crest, hat, and decorated garment. Therefore all the invited chiefs wore their own crests.

When they had put on their own crests, Holdamia opened his carved box, the cover of which was inlaid with all kinds of shells, and thick fog filled Dragging Along Shore’s house. Then the chiefs from all the tribes were silent. They were afraid to speak. Soon after the thick fog had come out, Holdamia closed his carved box, the fog disappeared, and the chiefs looked around the inside of the house. They saw that it was now full of seaweeds, sea anemones, and sea kales, which were hanging all around the house, and the copper canoe was on the first platform of the house; and there was a carved room on one side, with a design of the two killer whales joined together by their noses, and named Dashing Against Each Other; and on the other side of the fire a room appeared carved with green seaweeds. Dragging Along Shore wore his killer-whale garment covered with many horns, and the guests were also covered with seaweeds.

Therefore Dragging Along Shore proclaimed that his family name would be G·it-na-gun-a’ks, and this name was to continue from him from generation to generation.

Holdamia also gave a great feast to all the chiefs around, and he showed them what he had received from Chief Na-gun-a’ks. He held in his hand a copper paddle, and wore his sea-apple hat with a living person in the center. The abalone box was filled with thick fog. He also announced Na-gun-a’ks as one of the Eagle Clan.

Now Dragging Along Shore prospered, for he was successful wherever he went hunting, and he could get many animals. His fame spread all over the world, and he was known to all the people round about his village, and he gave a great many feasts to the chiefs. He gave a feast almost every year, for he was a very successful hunter because he had the blessing of Chief Na-gun-a’ks.

Once upon a time he went out again, as usual, to hunt, and three other men were with him in his canoe. They did not know his taboos, although Chief Dragging Along Shore told them that they must not touch any fish. He obtained all the animals he wanted. He found almost all the animals already dead, and on the way home dead animals or fish would float on the water in front of the canoe. They took them into the canoe. When evening came, they went ashore to seek a place in which to camp. They made their camp there, and took the animals and fish out of the canoe.

When the young men who were with the chief carried up the goods from the canoe, they saw a large bullhead aground. They ran there together, and one of the young men took the bullhead and clubbed it; but the other said, “Leave the bullhead alone, we have plenty of good fish!” But the young man who took it first said, °*No, [want to have it, for our chief said that we should take everything that we meet on the way.’ The two others, however, compelled him to leave it. They took it from him, and laughed at the bullhead. They cut open both sides of its mouth to enlarge it. The other man, however, was sorry, and went to tell his master what the two other men were doing. Then the chief was angry, and said, “Oh, you two! You have brought us into danger!” He told the young man to go up the hill and look down to the sea before they rounded the next point.

Then they took their canoe down, put aboard a few things, and paddled away from their camp to round the point: and the young man Was sitting on top of a hill, looking down. His eyes were following the canoe. As soon as they went around the point, the young man who was sitting on top of the hill saw how a great whirlpool opened and how it swallowed the canoe.

Then the young man left. In less than half a day he reached home, and told his people what had become of their master, and how he and the two others perished in the whirlpool.

Dragging Along Shore now lived in the house of Chief Na-gun-a’ks; and the two other men who had laughed at the bullhead perished in the bottom of the great whirlpool, because they had disobeyed the commands that Chief Na-gun-a’ks had given Dragging Along Shore before he sent him home, when he commanded him not to hurt any kind of fish.