RELIGION 27

from the moon and stated that there were mountains and snow
on it. It is commonly stated that the marks on the moon

‘represent a man carrying a bucket.

The stars figure but slightly either in Bella Coola myth-

ology or thought; it is not even known who made them. Two

i tenets ct eni eh

in the Great Bear constellation are called respectively Tpiksta
and Aunxines, “Little Girls.” A lone star in the same part of

the sky, named 4’Jox, is said to be following the girls to the

_ forest for illicit intercourse.

Moon, stars, and above all the sun, were, and still are to
a certain extent, used by the Bella Coola in computing the
passage of time. There are no individuals with the definite

prerogative of keeping count of time, but formerly wise old

men used to do so.‘ Differences of opinion were the rule rather
than the exception, a condition which often led to bitter dis-

- putes concerning the proper date for starting the winter cere-

monials. Boas (p. 41) has recorded the Bella Coola calendar
in greater detail than the present writer has been able to

do. The making of calendrical observations is a lost art,

and the following list of the months was all that could be
learnt. It will be noted that these agree with Boas in regard
to the months in the early part of the year, but not in those
between the summer and winter solstices; no explanation is

_ offered for this disparity.

First moon after the summer solstice: Sikélamtak, which

_ has the significance, ““The Time for Sockeye Salmon to Ascend

the River.”

Second moon after the summer solstice: S?isialit?, “The
Time for Eating Dog Salmon.”

Third moon after the summer solstice: S7iswai-st?, “The
Time for Eating Cohoe Salmon.”

Fourth moon after the summer solstice: Sigdalxam, “The
Time for Gathering Fern Root,” or Sidakaos di Ano*likwoisaix,

4A Kimsquit informant stated that there were professional calendrical experts

in his home when he was a young lad although members of the kusiut society (II,
chap. 1) sometimes attended to this matter.