WINTER CEREMONIAL DANCES 249

of prerogatives, it sometimes happens that a week or more
elapses without a kusiut wishing to perform. In such a case
the marshals instruct the heralds to summon the kukusiut for
the Restful Ceremony to a house from which the uninitiated
have been expelled. When all have assembled, the singers
beat out the song of any Ausiut and the audience joins in, al-
though the owner does not dance. Song after song is repeated,
the singers choosing particularly those which they fear may be
forgotten. The uninitiated, who hear the singing from the
adjacent houses, wonder what it may signify. The marshals
arrange with a kusiut willing to receive his prerogative, and
soon after midnight this person puts on a ceremonial collar,
even though no call has come to him, and is ready to play his
part. Sticks are distributed and one of the singers leads the
audience in frenzied beating. This suffices to bring the intan-
gible prerogative to the willing kusiut, who makes the motions
of catching something in his upstretched hands while the
women drone. Amid the continued pounding of sticks, the
dancer circles the house and presently throws what he has
received to one of his fellows. The actions of the recipient of
Fog have already been described, but there are intangible
prerogatives of other kinds. One of these is Rabbit; the owner
hops in imitation of the animal to any kusiut, presses his cupped
hands against the other’s chest, and the latter likewise begins
to hop. He in turn passes it to a third, he to a fourth, until
finally the owner withdraws his prerogative and returns it
above. The kukusiut become so interested that they often
forget to continue the beating of sticks, a matter of no impor-
tance since no uninitiated are present. No one offered the
Prerogative from the owner ever declines; to do so would
expose him to ridicule and a refusal is unthinkable according
to an elderly Bella Coola. Another prerogative of the same
type is an Adze, in which case the possessor pretends to be
using that tool. When finally withdrawn by the rightful
owner, he often makes the motion of throwing it on a rafter
instead of sending it back above; in this case it can be used