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in" (i. e., that was where he formerly sat). His wife was somewhat frightened, but he talked to them as if they were his own people. As he called out the names of the dead men who had held those seats they would say in turn, "Hade′ (present)," and he would pass a dish up to the speaker.
After they were through eating the chief of the bear tribe said to his friends very plainly, "Do not leave this man friendless, but go to him every one of you and show your respect." So they told the man to lie down in front of them, and before they left they licked him, meaning that thereby they licked his sorrow away. They said, "This is because you feel lonely." Then the bears started off.
At that time men from some other town came near, watched the big animals come out and heard the man speak to them as if they were his own friends, but they were afraid to go near.
22. THE WOMAN TAKEN AWAY BY THE FROG PEOPLE[1]
There was a large town in the Yakutat country not very far back of which lay a big lake very full of frogs. In the middle of the lake was a swampy patch on which many frogs used to sit.
One day the town-chief's daughter talked badly to the frogs. She took one up and made fun of it, saying, "There are so many of these creatures, I wonder if they do things like human beings. I wonder if men and women cohabit among them."
When she went out of doors that night, a young man came to her and said, "May I marry you?" She had rejected very many men, but she wanted to marry this one right away. Pointing toward the lake he said, "My father s house is right up here," and the girl replied, "How fine it looks!" When they went up to it, it seemed as though a door was opened for them, but in reality the edge of the lake had been raised. They walked under. So many young people were there that she did not think of home again.
Meanwhile her friends missed her and hunted for her everywhere. Finally they gave her up, and her father had the drums beaten for a death feast. They cut their hair and blackened their faces.
Next spring a man who was about to go hunting came to the lake to bathe himself with urine. When he was done, he threw the urine among a number of frogs sitting there and they jumped into the water. When he was bathing next day he saw all the frogs sitting together in the middle of the lake with the missing woman among them. He dressed as quickly as possible, ran home to the girl s father, and said, "I saw your daughter sitting in the middle of the pond in company with a lot of frogs." So her father and mother went up that evening with a number of other people, saw, and recognized her.
- ↑ See story 76. This myth is more often localized at Wrangell, and the woman's name is said to have been Qałtsi′xklî.