Beaver and Eagle went into the mountains and trained for four years. Then they knew where fire was, and they returned home and told their sister that they knew how to find it.
Now they started off. They traveled five days to the house of the people who owned the fire. Eagle drew over himself an eagle’s body; and Beaver drew over himself a beaver’s body.
Beaver at once went to work. He dammed the creek nearby and that night made a hole under that house. The next morning Beaver swam around in the pond of water made by the dam. An old man saw him and shot him. He took Beaver into the house and laid him beside the fire. He told the people to skin him. While they were skinning Beaver, they found a clam shell under his arm, which he had hidden there.
Just then the people saw a large eagle perched in a tree nearby. Quickly they wished for his feathers. At once they all ran out and began to shoot at him, but no one could hit him. And while they were shooting, Beaver was left alone.
Then Beaver rose quickly and put fire in his clam shell. He dug into the hole he had made beneath the house, and raced away to the water. He swam away with the fire.
As soon as Eagle saw that Beaver was safe, he flew away. Then they returned home. They gave fire to their sister.
HOW RAVEN BROUGHT FIRE
Haida
At that time there was no fire to be seen. They did not even know of it. Raven went northward on the surface of the sea. Far out at sea a big kelp was growing out of the water, but the kelp head was gone, and many sparks came out of it. This was the first time that Raven had ever seen fire.
Then Raven went along to it on the bottom of the sea. Then the big fishes—the Black Whales, and the Dolphins, and others—wanted to kill him as he went along. Owner-of-the-Fire was the one to whom he went.