Haida texts and myths

by Unknown

Now he came upon a broad trail. He started along. He came to Lᴀ′mas.[5] Then he came to some women digging wild-clover roots. The women said: “I smell Nanasî′mgît.” One of the women said so. Then the other one said: “I also smell him.” Now he went to one of them and opened her eyes. “My eyes are opened. My eyes are [[339]]opened.” She said that because she felt happy. Then he opened the eyes of the other. Then, for the first time, he learned his name.

Now the women asked him what he came for. “I am looking for my wife whom they carried away from me.” “They passed right by here with your wife. Isnē′g̣ał’s[6] son married your wife. The one who married her is named ‘Gîtgidᴀ′mtcꜝēx.’ When you come to the town be on the watch. A supernatural heron lives at the end of the town. He is always watching. He is always repairing a canoe.”

Then he started. He came to the end of the town. Now the heron discovered him. And the heron cried out. So he put the twisted cedar limbs, the gimlet, and the whetstone into his hands. And he put him into his armpit.

Now the town people came to see what terrible thing had happened. They asked him: “Old man, why do you say that?” “My sight deceived me. That is why I shouted.” And they went away from him.

Then he let him out from his armpit. [He said]: “The one who married your wife lives in the middle house in the town, and to-morrow two slaves are going for dead hemlocks standing behind the house. One of the slaves is named Raven. One is named Crow. They are going to steam the fin to put it on your wife.”

In the evening he started from him to the town. He looked into the house where his wife was, in which there were retaining timbers.[7] And he saw his wife sitting near her husband. He returned to the old man. And he spent the night in his house.

Next day he went behind the town. He came to where the dead hemlocks stood. He sat down there. Now two slaves came there. Then he went inside of the dead hemlock. Then they started to chop down the firewood. And he bit off the end of the stone wedge. They began to cry. One of the slaves said: “My master will talk to me as he usually does.”

Now Gunanasî′mgît came out of the firewood. He took the end of the stone wedge out of his mouth. It became as it had been before. Then he cut down their firewood for them. He chopped it up for them.

Then they said to him: “When evening comes they are going to steam your wife’s fin in the ground. We are going out after water. Now, when evening approaches, stand in front of the house. After we have gone back and forth with water for a while, we will let you in. After we have brought water a while we will let ourselves fall with the water into the bottom of the house excavation. While we turn the water into steam in the fire, pick up your wife.”

As soon as evening came he stood in front of the house. At once they let him in. They went for water. Now the stones became red [[340]]hot. Then they had her fins ready. They had a stone box in readiness on the side toward the door.