168 THE BELLA COOLA INDIANS

gothm, and it is agreed that the call shall come to nim on the
following evening.

X’s first task is to prepare, or to have made for him, a stick
which he will use throughout the ceremony. It is of yellow
cedar, about five feet in length; in Kimsquit it is decorated
with four bands of swan feathers, in Bella Coola with alter-
nate bands of dyed and undyed cedar-bark.

The following evening the call comes to X. He utters a
low whistle, resembling a hoot, goes towards the fire and slowly
revolves on himself. The kukusiut women present begin to
drone and the uninitiated are expelled. Constantly turning
on himself, X slowly moves sunwise around the flames, re-
peating his hoot three times, once at each side of the fire. He
stands behind it and calls out loudly:

“Please say exactly what you want; whatever it is, I will
do it.”

After the customary frenzied beating, he withdraws to the
back-room. Heralds go to all the houses, reporting what has
taken place and summoning the kukusiut. When all have
gathered, X appears and asks for the usual collar of dyed
cedar-bark and a dance-apron. These are provided, put on
him and his face is blackened. Under the guidance of a marshal
or singer, the kukusiut men beat furiously on the floor, without
time or rhythm, until the leader motions them to conclude with
four thunderous beats. In the stillness that follows X begins
to chatter loudly, without using exact words, and everyone
realizes that this is an invitation to guess who are the three
supernatural beings in whom his power is localized. Some-
times the meaning is made still more evident by his carrying
the stick previously mentioned, which is the prerogative of
Mystery dancers alone. The guests enter into the spirit of the
dance and call out their guesses, naming little known supet-
natural beings, parts of beings, or manifestations of the super-
natural; sometimes three or four answer at the same time.
The four remembrancers have placed themselves near X and
it is their duty to recollect the replies. When kukusiut alone