Tradition of the L!a'L!asiqwEla. (Recorded by George Hunt.) Oldest-One-in-the-World and his tribe lived at Red-Sand-Beach; and Oldest-One-in-the-World had for his princess Man y-colored-Woman, and the woman was blind. Many-colored-Woman had twelve slaves; and she would always go to ?ne?wê'd, where there is wild rice. For a long time she was in the habit of going there; and a long pole stood outside of the house of Chief Oldest-One-in-the-World, and on top of the long pole an eagle was sitting; and it screeched all the time whenever Many-colored-Woman went out paddling with her twelve slaves. Thus Many-colored-Woman knew which way they were going, on account of the princess-pole. One day the sea was very smooth, and Many-colored-Woman asked her slaves to go to ?ne?wê'd. The slaves were content. They had been paddling a long time when Many-colored-Woman questioned her slaves, and said, "O slaves! why does it take so long before we arrive at ?ne?wê'd," Thus she said. One of them spoke, and said, "O mistress! we cannot make any headway against the tide." Thus he said. Then Many-colored-Woman began to hear the screeching of the eagle faintly. She hardly heard it. Then Many-colored-Woman spoke again, and said, "O slaves! what are you doing?" Thus she said, and took away their paddles and threw them into the water. Then she knew that they were intending to paddle away with their mistress. Then they went up from the beach, and Many-colored-Woman held the hand of the man. Now the wise one Immediately Many-colored-Woman spoke gratefully on account of what he had said. She came to the corner of the large house, and the man asked Many-colored-Woman to take off her blanket. Many-colored-Woman took off her blanket and her apron, and the man took her on his arms and made her sit down in the water of life. Then the man said, "Oh, my dear! now dive. Dive four times." Thus he said. Immediately Many-colored-Woman dived; and as soon as she came up again, she was able to see our daylight. She dived again, and she continued to dive until she had done so four times. As soon as she had finished, she was a young woman, and she was no longer blind. Immediately Many-colored-Woman was called out of the water by her husband. Then Many-colored-Woman was able to see everything in the house. It is said that the two posts in the rear of the house were thunder-birds, and sea-bears were under the two thunder-birds; and it is said the cross-piece over the thunder-bird posts was a sea-lion, and the posts on each side of the door of the house were each one sea-lion, Now, Abelone-Shell-of-the-World and Many-colored-Woman were living as husband and wife. They had not been married long when Many-colored- Woman was with child, and she gave birth to a small boy. Abelone-Shell-of-the-World at once named his son Copper-Maker. Many-colored-Woman did not know who the old man was who was always lying in the rear of the large house. She asked her husband, and said, "Who is that ugly old man lying in the rear of the house?" Thus Many-colored-Woman said to her husband. Abelone-Shell-of-the-World laughed, and said, "Oh, my dear! that is Wealthiest, Copper-Maker. He is my father." Thus he said to her. Then Many-colored-Woman was happy, because she knew that her husband was an important person. Then she was again with child, and it was not long before she gave birth to a little boy. Abelone-Shell-of-the-World
The children said at once that they would go to see their grandfather; and Many-colored-Woman advised her children, and said to them, "O sons! the name of my father is Oldest-One-in-the-World, and the long pole with an eagle sitting on top of it stands outside his house. The eagle screeches all the time;" and she told them about the shallow water, and the floating sand on the sea, and the drifting logs floating on the sea, and the Charcoal-at-North-End-of-World. (She continued,) "These you will meet if you are minded to go to see your grandfather." The eldest son spoke at once, and said to his mother, "We will escape, for I do not want our father to know it. We will only say that we will go to see the world." The children got ready at once. They took the old canoe and calked it; and as soon as the old canoe was finished, they got ready; and Abelone-Shell-of-the-World questioned his sons, and said, "O sons! what are you getting ready for?" Thus he said to them. The oldest one spoke, and said, "Oh, we are getting ready for this: we want to go and see the world." Thus he said. Then Abelone-Shell-of-the-World just laughed, and said, "My sons, don't conceal your wishes: just tell me that you are going to see your grandfather, Oldest-One-in-the-World. You shall use the self-paddling copper canoe." Thus he said to them. Then he--namely, Abelone-Shell-of-the-World-- At once it was heard by his tribe, and they came immediately to discover why Oldest-One-in-the-World was splitting wood. Then the tribe saw the four children of Many-colored-Woman sitting there. Oldest-One-in-the-World spoke, and praised his children. Then Oldest-One-in-the-World asked them to build a fire in his large house. The young men went at once and built a fire in the middle of it; and as soon as the fire in the large house began to burn, the tribe went in, and also the four children of Many-colored-Woman went into it. When the tribe had gone into the house, the oldest of the four young men said to the tribe of their grandfather that they should go and bring the four baskets out of the canoe. At once they went, but in vain. It was not long before they came back. They were not able to lift them. Then Place-of-Desire was just sent by his elder brothers to go and bring the four baskets. It was not long before 285 he came, carrying the four baskets. Immediately they opened out what was contained in them, and the house was almost [not] filled with all kinds of property. The eldest of the brothers, Copper-Maker, spoke at once, and said, "O old man! this is sent to you by Many-colored-Woman. This is what is piled up here in the house, that you may invite with it your tribe." Thus he said. Then, on account of this, they all believed that they were the sons of Many-colored-Woman; and it is said that Oldest-One-in-the-World was the first one to give a potlatch. Then he gave a feast with the food that was sent to him by Many-colored-Woman; and then he came and showed the large house, and the carvings, and the four seal dishes, and the killer-whale dishes, and the others. And this was first given by Copper-Maker; and Seaside-of-the-World came next, and after that came Copper-Surface, and then the youngest one, Place-of-Desire; and then Oldest-One-in-the-World distributed coppers among his tribe, and he was the first who handed down coppers. The four sons of Many-colored-Woman never went back, and Many-colored-Woman never came back to her country. Some say that Many-colored-Woman did come back, and that the self-paddling copper canoe came back, and that it staid in our country. That is the end. 275:2 This figure is illustrated in Plate XLV, Fig. 4, F. Boas, The Kwakiutl of Vancouver Island (Publications of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Vol. V).
Footnotes
l (Chief-of-the-Ancients)