Traditions of the Thompson River Indians (cont.)
After a while Ntci’mka told his helper to go home to his own country, because he could now get along without his aid, and further added that his friends would be glad to see him. He told him to travel the same way that he himself had gone, -- up Thompson River to a point beyond Kamloops, and then to turn south. The first day he was to travel as far as Ca’nExEnEnamax,270 on top of which mountain he was to camp. He was to return to Ntci’mka the next day. On the following day he was to go to the same place, camp again, then next morning to continue his journey up Thompson River. Before departing, the lad went out hunting, and gathered an immense band of deer in the valley271 leading from Lytton to BEta’ni. He killed a great number, which he gave to Ntci’mka as a present. When he was ready to start on his journey, Ntci’mka presented him with a great number of eagle’s quills and dentalia. He traveled as directed. On the second day he returned to Ntci’mka’s house having camped the preceding night on the top of Ca’nExEnEnamax. Ntci’mka had advised him to do this so he might have good luck on his journey, as Ca’nExEnEnamax was a mysterious place. The next day he started again. Ntci’mka gave him directions how to go, and told him that he might have difficulty when passing Kamloops. When the lad reached the plains, which lie west of Kamloops, a great number of men ran out with weapons to attack him; therefore he caused two large, thick trees to grow, and climbed up into one of them for refuge. The Kamloops men272 began to chop it down, but it was nearly nightfall before it fell. Just before it fell the lad jumped into the top of the other one. His enemies said, "We will camp here, and tomorrow we will chop down the other tree." Therefore that night they all camped around the tree in a large circle, leaving one old man at the bottom to keep watch. During the night the lad crept down and offered to give the sentinel all his dentalia and eagle's tail feathers if he would conduct him outside of the circle of his enemies, to which proposition the old man assented. In the morning when they awoke, the people say that the lad had escaped, and, seeing the old man in possession of the dentalia and feathers at once came to the conclusion that he had purposely allowed the lad to escape. Therefore they were angry with him, and were going to kill him, but the old man offered to divide the spoils amongst them, and thus pacified them. The quills were divided first, but there were not enough of them to go around the party. For this reason the Porcupine got none, which annoyed him very much, so he bent his head on his knees, and would not speak to them. One of the men told him not to be sulky, because he would be allowed more dentalia than the others, so as to make up for the quills; but the porcupine neither looked up nor answered. Then the old man, who was dividing the spoils, grew angry, and, throwing all the dentalia at him cursed him. He turned him into a porcupine, as seen at the present day. Therefore porcupine quills were once dentalia, and the porcupine himself was at one time a man.
XXXI. STORY OF NUKANO’XA, THE WOMAN AND THE
HAXAA’TKO.[Nkamtci’nemux]
There were at one time a number of Indians who lived near a lake. One of them had a young wife, who suddenly became unwell, and was not able to do her household work and other duties which devolved on her. Every morning she repaired to the lake to wash herself, returning about noon, groaning, and leaning on a staff. This conduct continued for some time, seemingly without getting any better, although she had been washing herself and taking medicines everyday. At last her husband became suspicious and thought that he would watch her, as he believed she was only feigning sickness. Accordingly, the next morning, when she went to wash herself, he followed at some little distance, keeping a close eye on her movements. Not knowing that she was watched, the woman repaired, as was her wont, to a place where she had hidden nice clothing, and other articles. Here she divested herself of the clothes she had on, and, after washing, clad herself in this new apparel, combed her hair, and painted her face. After finishing her toilet, she stepped out onto the open bank of the lake, -- a sprightly and handsome woman, without any appearance of sickness. Lying down near the edge of the lake, she cried, "Nukano’xa" and immediately a Grizzly Bear half emerged out of the water and looked at her. She cried to him, "it is not you I want, it is your eldest brother." He disappeared at once. She cried "Nukano’xa!" many times, and each time the head and half the body of some animal or fish would rise out of the water; but she told them all that she cared not for them, it was their elder brother she wanted. At last the head and half the body of a man appeared, and she said to him, "it is you I call for." The man, who was exceedingly handsome and had very long hair, swam ashore. Advancing naked towards her, he embraced her, and in return received her embrace. To judge by the way they acted, it was evident that they were old acquaintances, and now the husband knew that the wife only shammed sickness, and that she repaired to the lake every day for no other purpose than to meet her paramour.
