WINTER CEREMONIAL DANCES 249

of prerogatives, it sometimes happens that a week or more elapses without a kusiut wishing to perform. In such a case the marshals instruct the heralds to summon the kukusiut for the Restful Ceremony to a house from which the uninitiated have been expelled. When all have assembled, the singers beat out the song of any Ausiut and the audience joins in, al- though the owner does not dance. Song after song is repeated, the singers choosing particularly those which they fear may be forgotten. The uninitiated, who hear the singing from the adjacent houses, wonder what it may signify. The marshals arrange with a kusiut willing to receive his prerogative, and soon after midnight this person puts on a ceremonial collar, even though no call has come to him, and is ready to play his part. Sticks are distributed and one of the singers leads the audience in frenzied beating. This suffices to bring the intan- gible prerogative to the willing kusiut, who makes the motions of catching something in his upstretched hands while the women drone. Amid the continued pounding of sticks, the dancer circles the house and presently throws what he has received to one of his fellows. The actions of the recipient of Fog have already been described, but there are intangible prerogatives of other kinds. One of these is Rabbit; the owner hops in imitation of the animal to any kusiut, presses his cupped hands against the other’s chest, and the latter likewise begins to hop. He in turn passes it to a third, he to a fourth, until finally the owner withdraws his prerogative and returns it above. The kukusiut become so interested that they often forget to continue the beating of sticks, a matter of no impor- tance since no uninitiated are present. No one offered the Prerogative from the owner ever declines; to do so would expose him to ridicule and a refusal is unthinkable according to an elderly Bella Coola. Another prerogative of the same type is an Adze, in which case the possessor pretends to be using that tool. When finally withdrawn by the rightful owner, he often makes the motion of throwing it on a rafter instead of sending it back above; in this case it can be used