192 THE BELLA COOLA INDIANS

kinds of salmon captured by Winwina. In their efforts to make
realistic representations, the artisans often use the skins of
steel-head salmon, the only variety obtainable in winter,
stretched over wooden frames, and painted. Various women
are asked to make imitations of berries captured by the Herma-
phrodite. In each case X requests one woman to make a
certain berry, root, or bark used for food, and so many are
needed that he often becomes weary from constantly calling
out his requirements. As on other musiutalsap, the songs are
practised, food is served, and the usual ceremonies occur.

The next morning, that of gotim, the carpenters, both men
and women, start early at their work. The method of
making the salmon has already been described, but a word
should be said about the berries. They are made of dyed cedar-
bark, undyed cedar-bark, and snow-berries, the only material
available in winter. The workmanship varies enormously;
some realistic articles are turned out, others are exceedingly
crude. In the evening booth kukusiut and uninitiated are
summoned to X’s house for the usual protracted ceremony of
gotivm night.

Nebusam follows the next day. The wooden salmon and
berries are placed in a convenient spot behind the fire, and in
the evening X asks some one of the senior kukustut to assist
him in their display. Sometimes one of the marshals under-
takes this duty, and at any rate they have to express their
approval of the dancer’s choice. The kukusiut are the first to
assemble, and when the last details have been arranged the
uninitiated are called in and marvel at the canoe behind the
fire. The kusiut chosen to assist X stands beside it, holding
the wooden spring salmon in his arms, its head upstream.

“What is it?” he asks the uninitiated. “If you recognize
which salmon it is you will be successful in catching that kind
next summer.”

The uninitiated are thus urged to guess, but fear of the
kukusiut acts as a deterrent, and it is often some little time
before a plucky youth calls out which salmon he thinks it to