The Salish People: Volume I. Charles Hill-Tout

“This is your wife.” He then did the same with the red woman; and with a parting admonition to the man, he and his brothers climbed through the smoke-hole and left him and his newly-acquired wives to themselves.⁷

      Some time after this, as he travelled through the country with his brothers, Benign-face heard of a very powerful one-legged wizard who speared men’s shadows as they passed, thus killing and afterwards eating them. “Come, brothers,” said Benign-face, “I will try my powers against this wicked cannibal. I think I can outwit him, and put an end to his evil practices.” After they had travelled some days they came to the place where the cannibal waylaid and pierced the shadows of his victims. It was his custom to stand in the water at a certain place where the road ran close to the water, with a little magic copper-headed spear in his hand, as if he were spearing fish; and when the shadow of the passer-by fell on the water, he would thrust the spear through it, and the person above would immediately fall down dead. He would then take the body home to his wife, who would skin and cook it, and they would afterwards feast together upon it. Thus had they been living for many years, when Benign-face heard of them, and determined to put a stop to their wickedness. Bidding his brothers stay on the top of the hill overlooking the river and await his return, he took a knife and made his way down to the river, a little above where the cannibal-wizard waited for his victims to pass. When he reached the river, he changed himself into a beautifully-marked little trout and, carrying the knife in his mouth, swam down the stream to where the wizard stood on his one leg in the water. When he came opposite him, he began jumping and frisking about in the water just under his nose. He soon caught the wizard’s attention, and induced him, by his beautiful colours and by his movements, to take a interest in him, and presently to spear him. This was the last thing the wizard should have done, for he might not use his magic spear for aught but piercing men’s shadows if he would preserve its medicine intact. As soon as the spear struck Benign-face he quickly cut the cord that held the spear-head to the shaft, which latter the wizard still retained in his hand by a thong. When the wizard perceived that the magic point was gone, he was greatly agitated, and sought for stones and sticks with which to kill the fish and get back his precious spear-point again. But the more violent his exertions, the muddier the water got, and the less his chance of striking Benign-face, who, taking advantage of the muddy state of the water, hastened back upstream again to his starting-place. Benign-face now resumed his own form and, plucking the magic spear-point from his body, threw it far out into the river so that it might never be found and put to evil purposes again.

      He then rejoined his brothers and told them what he had done, and that they must now go and visit the wizard’s house and complete the punishment he had in store for him. When they came to the bank above the spot where the wizard had lost and was still hunting for his spear-point, Benign-face put his foot on the edge of the bank and sent a mass of gravel and mud down into the river, to force the wizard to give over his search and go home. The latter just leapt up on the opposite bank on his one leg, and presently returned to his search again. Benign-face then caused another large portion of the bank to slide down into the river. This so frightened the wizard this time that he gave over the search and ran home as fast as he could. There is a mud-slide on the river, about five or six miles below Spence’s Bridge, which the old Indians point out as that caused by Sqaktktquaclt on this occasion. The boys presently came to the cannibal’s keekwilee house and, seeing the smoke ascending from the smoke-hole, judged that he was at home, and descended. They found the wizard’s wife at work upon a human skin; but the wizard himself was lying on his bed with his blanket drawn over his face, which he did not remove as the boys entered. They sat down round the fire; and presently, as had been agreed upon beforehand, Funny-boy began to talk about the good dinner they had had off a trout they had found in the river that morning. The wizard still kept his head under the blanket, taking no notice of anybody or anything; but when the other brother chimed in and said; “Yes, it was a beautiful fish to look at, but still more beautiful to taste; and the man that speared it and lost that fine copper spear-head must have been very vexed at his ill luck, I should think.” The wizard threw the blanket off his head, and said: “What is that I heard you remark about a fish with a copper spear-head in it?” Benign-face now joined in the conversation, and told the wizard that they had found a fine trout that morning floating down the river with a copper spear-head in it. “That was my fish and my spear-head,” said the wizard. “I was out spearing this morning and lost it. I set great value on that spear-head, and want it back again.” “But,” replied Benign-face, “how could this spear belong to you? You do not spear fish, I think. These are not fish bones or fish heads I see around your house; nor is that a fish skin your wife is now at work upon. Tell us now truly, what do you use your copper spear for?” The old wizard, thinking he would get the spear-point back the sooner, told them the true use he put it to, which no sooner had Benign-face heard than he answered: “I knew it all before, and it was I who carried off your spear-point this morning. I was the fish that enticed you to spear it; but now that you have convicted yourself, I will see that you spear and devour no more people.” And speaking thus, he took the wizard by the hair on the top of his head and shook him, transforming him at the same time into a blue jay. And because he held the wizard by the hair on the top of his head as he shook him, all blue jays have now in consequence a top-knot or bunch of feathers standing out from their heads. The cannibal’s wife he changed into a mountain-grouse, and thus were both punished for their evil deeds.

      From this place the brothers went to the Nicola valley, where they heard there dwelt a quarrelsome tribe of people, who were always at war with their neighbours and never gave them any peace. As Benign-face drew near the valley, the people heard of his approach, and fearing that he would work them harm, they one and all left their homes and fled up the mountain side. But they could not escape their punishment thus. When Benign-face saw them running up the mountain side, he straightway turned them all into little rocks, which may be seen from the waggon-road as one passes today.

      Leaving the Nicola, they travelled back towards the Thompson again, and on their way they came to the land of a very strong and powerful people. This tribe was very rich and possessed the best of everything; but they were fierce and cruel, and made slaves of all the people around. When they neared the outskirts of the village, Benign-face bade his brothers cut a bundle of osiers and make a large basket and put him into it, finishing the mouth of it about him in such a way that he could not fall out. While they were doing this, he made some white and red paint, and when he was presently placed in the basket he took some of each kind in either hand. He now told Funny-boy to put the basket on his shoulders and carry him towards the village. As they thus proceeded a large eagle swooped down and caught the basket containing Benign-face in his talons. He had expected this, and told his brother to let go and allow the eagle to carry him off. This eagle was not a mere bird. It possessed the power of foreknowledge to some extent. It knew that Benign-face was coming to punish the people of the village, to whom it was in some way related. Benign-face knew also that this eagle was aware of his purpose and would attempt to thwart him; hence his instructions to his brothers and his preparation of the paint, by the aid of which he hoped to outwit the eagle. When Funny-boy felt the strain on the basket he let go, as his brother desired, and the eagle bore Benign-face off in it. When it had ascended a little way, it let the basket drop. It repeated this manoeuvre several times, intending thereby to kill Benign-face. The latter, when the eagle had dropped him a time or two, put the red paint in one side of his mouth and the white in the other, and, the saliva mixing with and liquifying it, the paint began to flow from the corners of his mouth. The eagle, perceiving this, thought it to be his blood and brains oozing from his mouth, and, thinking that he was killed, straightway carried him off to its nest on the mountain to its two young ones. Leaving him thus in the nest, it flew away again. As soon as it was out of sight, Benign-face cut two holes in the basket for his arms, and, putting his hands through, he seized an eaglet by the legs in each, and forced them to fly off with him to where his two brothers were awaiting him. Still holding the birds by their legs, he bade his brothers cut the basket from him; and when he was free, he shook the two eaglets so hard that all their bones fell out, leaving the empty skins in his hands. These he made his brothers put on, telling them they would be quite safe in them. He himself then assumed the form of a dog, only where the tail should have been he stuck a long and sharp double-bladed jade knife; and in the place of the ears he stuck two similar but smaller knives; and where the dog’s foreclaws would be