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Kwakiutl Tales: 14. Great-Inventor

14. Great-Inventor.

(Dictated by MalE'd, a Kwâ'g*ul, 1893.)

The myth people were hard up for water. They only drank the juice of roots. Then Great-Inventor went to get water for his tribe. He knew that only one woman, living at Bull Harbor, had water. Then he got ready to go to Bull Harbor. He arrived at Bull Harbor. She was warming her back. He went in, and the woman was asleep. Then he took some dung and put it behind the woman. Then Great-Inventor pushed her. "Don't sleep," he said to the woman. "Evidently your house is soiled. I want to have a drink from you." Thus said Great-Inventor to the woman. "Look at my mouth: it is all dry, for I desire to drink."--"Go on, drink there," said the woman, on her part, to Great-Inventor. Then Great-Inventor drank water. He had his mouth in the water for a long time. Then the woman spoke, "Don't, else I shall have nothing to drink." Then Great-Inventor looked up and said, "I have not drunk yet. Look at my mouth! it is just dusty." It is said that Great-Inventor had a bladder into which the water was poured. "You

He went to the beach and went aboard his folding paddle-side canoe. Then he crossed and went to the inland side (Vancouver Island). Then he urinated and thus made the rivers. Where he sprinkled water, there were small rivers. He went around the world making rivers. After four days he had finished.

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Then he returned to Crooked-Beach. Immediately he invited his tribe in. Then he talked about the rivers he had made. Then he told his tribe that he would get a wife from Salmon for the rivers. He got ready, with his tribe, to get a wife from Salmon. Day came, and they started in the canoes. When the canoes were loaded, his whole tribe went aboard the folding canoe. Then they steered southward. "Don't let us be this way," said his tribe. "It is said that below is the place to paddle. There is no storm there." Then (the canoe) went right down. It was under the sea, and went along paddling underneath. Then he saw the color of the smoke of Salmon. They carried up the canoe, and Great-Inventor pushed back the trees. One tree stood alone on the ground. Then Great-Inventor whitened its trunk. Very early in the morning the slave of Salmon came paddling along the beach. Then Great-Inventor went into the tree. The slave caught sight of it, and went right out of the canoe, going up to it. Then he drove his wedge into the bottom of the tree, and Great-Inventor bit off the

Then Great-Inventor asked the slave, "Has not the chief of Salmon a child? Does not the child of Salmon take walks?"--"The princess of Salmon comes first to meet me. She will try to carry on her shoulder the heart of the fire-wood that I get." Then Great-Inventor told the slave that he wished to get a wife from Salmon. "Only take care!" was said to Great-Inventor by the slave. "Take this stone when you first cohabit with her. Her crotch is always biting." Then Great-Inventor pushed down the tree. The alder broke up on the ground. Then Great-Inventor wedged it to pieces. He took care of its heart, for he wanted to go and hide in it. Then the wood was taken aboard. The tribe of Great-Inventor came and helped (with) the loading. When all the wood was aboard, the heart of the tree was put on top, and Great-Inventor hid inside. Great-Inventor left word with his tribe that they should go at daybreak. Then the one who had gone to get fire-wood arrived at the beach, and the princess of Salmon came to meet him who had gone for fire-wood. She waded to meet him, and took the top piece of the wood that was lying there, in which Great-Inventor was hiding. Right away he cohabited with her.

In the morning the tribe of Great-Inventor came ashore. "Don't stay thus, friend," was said to the girl. "Come to the fire with the one who is lying down with you." Then the girl said to Great-Inventor, "Take care! this is that with which they try to kill those who come from time to time to us. It is the settee of my father. Squid-bones are in the settee." Then Great-Inventor put a sandstone on his back. He just met his tribe when they were coming into the house, and Great-Inventor came out of the room. "Don't be that way," said Salmon to his wife, "but give our son-in-law to eat." She just sent the younger sisters of Great-Inventor's wife to the beach to play in the water. Then the children became salmon. They became sockeye salmon. They were cut quickly, and were roasted. Then the woman, the mother-in-law of Great-Inventor, spoke. "Please gather up this clothing of these younger sisters and go and throw it into the water."

Then all that was roasted was placed before them. Great-Inventor pulled out the collar-bone of the sockeye and pushed it behind his ear. After they had eaten, the bones were gathered and were thrown into the water. Immediately the salmon jumped and came to life. Only one of them had no blanket-pin.

The various kinds of Salmon also went aboard their canoes to follow their chieftainess. The canoe of Great-Inventor just waited from time to time for the canoes of the Salmon, for he wished to see the face of the mountains when doing his work. "Do let me go ahead," said Deer. "Don't! we must see the face of our land." Then Great-Inventor discovered the land. "Go ahead, Deer!" said Great-Inventor. Then Deer arose in the canoe, and jumped from one canoe of the salmon to another, and all the canoes of the salmon capsized. Then the various kinds of salmon began to jump, and Great-Inventor arose in his canoe and pointed to the rivers. "You will go that way," said Great-Inventor, calling the names of the rivers. Therefore salmon go to the rivers made by Great-Inventor. That is the end.