STORIES 389

held up his legs to the heat again, but though he kept them there until
they were badly burnt, no more grease came. Seal waited and waited,
until, becoming angry, she picked up her pan and went home jn disgust.

RAVEN AND VARIED THRUSH?!

Once upon a time Raven went to the home of Varied Thrush.

“I have come to call,” he said.

Thrush, a woman, politely invited him to sit down for a meal. Then
she took the box which she used for berry-picking, hung it on a projecting
rafter outside the house, and began to sing; instantly a few berries ap-
peared in the box. She sang four times, and when she had finished, the
receptacle was full. Thrush placed the food before her guest, and Raven
ate heartily. When it was time to leave, he picked up the box with what
he had not consumed, and invited his hostess to come and collect it the
following day.

On the morrow Thrush went to Raven’s house, where he invited her
to sit down for a meal. Then he made a hole in a corner of the house,
placed the same food-box beneath it, and began to sing, imitating his
guest’s song. A few salmon berries were deceived and entered the recep-
tacle. Again Raven sang, but this time the berries recognized the decep-
tion and the box was filled, not with fruit, but guano. Thrush was very
angry.

“You tried to steal my method of gathering berries,” she burst out.

Then she picked up her box and went home, leaving Raven dis-
comfited.

RAVEN AND BUCK®

Once upon a time, Raven went to the home of an old, large-antlered
buck and asked:

“In what month do you get fat?”

“I grow fat when they put up the sticks to dry the salmon,” replied
Buck.

“That is peculiar,” said Raven. “I get fat then too; our families
must be related.”

He said no more, but waited patiently for autumn.

When the sticks were set up for salmon drying, Raven went again to
Buck’s house and said:

‘For another version of this story see Boas, p..93:

‘The Bella Coola say that when this bird sings, flowers, berries, animals, and
fish gather to listen to the melody.

*For another version of this story see Boas, p. 92.