10 THE BELLA COOLA INDIANS

untranslatable word with the significance of “One who has
suffered loss through faulty concealment [of his repository].”
Some of these vaults are said to be dangerous to the unin-
‘tiated who avoid them and in this way the sanctity of some
chiefs’ meeting-places is guarded.

According to Kimsquit belief, Anolikwotsaix has a hus-
band, A¢mogttaikila, who dwells with her in every repository.
If an uninitiated person should chance to find a vault, he falls
dead before the power emanating from Anolikwotsaix. Her
husband then restores the dead by blowing violently on the
back of the victim’s neck, accompanying this with cries of
hoip. When a person is initiated into the kusiut society,
the uninitiated hear the songs used, in many of which are
references to the experiences of the novice with this super-
natural pair.

Turning now to the manner in which the kukusiut regard
their own society, it is evident that the most important duty
of each member is to aid in impressing and deceiving the unin-
itiated. The prestige of the organization depends upon the
ability of its members to inspire awe, hence any weakness in
fulfilling this obligation is an anti-social act. For this purpose
the society acts as a whole. Many kukusiut have, for example,
Cannibal prerogatives, and on occasion the Cannibals, having
the same functions, work together, but they do not form a
separate organization of their own.?- Many of the means em-
ployed to deceive and impress the uninitiated have already
been described. Mythology records, and it appears to be a
fact, that long ago the ascendancy of the kukusiut was often
challenged by the a’a/k and other uninitiated, but when the
white man came the society had reached a position of such
eminence that the powers of its members were unquestioned.
Moreover, the combined strength of virtually all the seniors of
the tribe was so great that an uninitiated person could not
assert himself even if he was suspicious.

?The Bella Coola state that such sub-societies are found among the Kwakiutl.