RELIGION 81

jocularly, that a man grows to resemble his ancestral cloak;
if, for example, one man’s is the eagle, his hair turns white
early, whereas that of another with raven crest long preserves
its blackness. More definite, is the use as a signal for attack, of
a whistle imitating the cry of the leader’s bird or animal.
Finally, when a man whose crest is the raven hears one of these
birds calling, he cries out:

“Hello, Gwatttintao |the vocative form], it is as you say.”

This custom is probably due to a belief in the ability of
ravens to bear news.

On the whole the attitude of the Bella Coola towards living
examples of their crests does not differ from that of mingled
respect and superiority with which they regard other birds and
animals.

THE RAVEN

The beliefs of the Bella Coola concerning Raven differ so
fundamentally from those respecting other birds and animals,
that the subject must be treated separately. In the beginning
of time, when AZguntém sent down the ancestors of the Bella
Coola to this earth, he despatched Raven to be their guide and
teacher. For this purpose Raven was given greater power than
that granted to any other animal. He came to earth in avian
form, then changed to a man, but his cloak did not float back
to the land above as did those of the other first-comers. In-
stead, it remained in the world below where he could resume
it at will. .guntém had instructed him to travel to all parts
of the world, meaning the coast of British Columbia, in order
to study the arts and crafts of the inhabitants and bring back
to Bella Coola those which seemed desirable. On these explor-
ations he used to assume raven form and set off in his canoe,
Tobink?, which travelled without visible motive power at
phenomenal speed. Owing to the power that dqguntém had
given him, he could talk to the trees and the mountains, the
birds, the animals, and the insects, as well as to the human
beings he encountered on the coast.