SONGS 305

emphatically that the songs which they used were little more
than series of meaningless phrases, often in languages unknown
to the hearers. It was possible to collect the two following
examples of this type:

Aiyaa siyaa(a).

(2) Recorded as song VII D 35b, National Museum of Canada; singer, Jim
Pollard.

It is believed that this song was composed by Raven, but
no one has any knowledge of when, or for what purpose, it was
made. A sndéxom used it in Bella Coola many years ago, and
the words and tune have since been remembered. Siya is said
to be the word for man in a language spoken on the west side
of Vancouver Island, so it is assumed that the visionary must
have come from that region.

The second example consists of a single word:

Aiyelixo(a).

(2) Recorded as song VII D 35c, National Museum of Canada; singer, Jim
Pollard.

Atyelixo is in a language unintelligible to any of the Bella
Coola. This word and tune are supposed to be even more
ancient than the first example.

Kusiut Sones

Kustut rites are the only ones now carried out by the Bella
Coola with even approximate completeness, and many of the
songs used at them are still remembered by all. A number of
dances took place during the period of investigation and the
texts of all the songs used were collected, as well as the music
of the majority. This explains the full versions of the exam-
ples in this section as compared to the preceding ones. More-
over, it is probable that kusiut songs, composed with care by
the singers, have always been more logical than those employed
by shamans in which the fiction of supernatural instruction has
been preserved. In former times, kusiut songs were always