20 THE BIG CANOE

tools, until at last not a flaw was visible. The dish
was done!

Satisfied, Quahl turned it this way and that, in the
sunlight that shone down through the branches of the
tall spruces and cedars that surrounded the little
glade. There were no flaws in the dish—not one.

“Tn all the islands of the Haidas, there is no other
grease dish like this one,” he thought with satisfaction.
“Tt is my own design, unlike any I have ever seen.
It will hold plenty of grease, yet the base is so firm
and the bowl so deep that it will not tip over easily
or spill; and for that reason, if for no other, my
father will be pleased.”

Carved from a single block of fine-grained wood,
Quahl’s masterpiece resembled a large broad gravy
dish upon a graceful round base. On both sides were
curved lips through which the fish-oil could be poured ;
between them were two handles formed by the slender
curved bodies of two olachen fish in the act of leap-
ing into the bowl—two exquisitely carved fish, their
bodies gracefully poised, their eyes made of tiny
pieces of abalone shell, cleverly inlaid.

As Quahl rose from the log, Kinna, his younger
brother, came running up the trail from the village,
so breathless and excited that he was unable to speak
intelligibly when he stood before Quahl.

“Calm yourself, my brother,” Quahl said gently,
putting his arm around Kinna’s shoulder and push-