Our Origin Stories

Please Note:
This text was compiled and prepared by Matthew Ambers and Rande Cook, with assistance from Maxine Matilpi, William Wasden Jr, and Stan Hunt Jr.

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The Herring stories

In the tradition of Madiłbe

“The ancestors of the Ma’a̱mtagila lived at Killer-Whale-Place, near Hungry. They had for their chief Wealth-Maker. He had two boys for children. For a long time the chief and his tribe lived happily in their village, for they had much food. Then suddenly the people were starving, and Wealth-Maker was also starving; for all kinds of fishes of the sea, and the food of the land (berries), had disappeared. He only kept four pieces of dog-salmon roe for his two children to smell of. For a long time the people were starving. Then the chief asked his children just to smell the roe when they felt hungry. The children did this for a long time, for this was their food. Then the children felt really hungry, and the wife of Wealth-Maker asked him to go search for fern-roots, inland from Killer-Whale-place.

It was not long before a handsome man entered the house of Wealth-Maker, where were the two children left behind. He spoke at once “O children! Where are you victuals?” thus he said. The elder one replied at once, and said “we have no provisions.” Then the man laughed and said “Oh don’t try to deceive me, for I know that you have roe as your provisions. Take it and eat it,” he said. Then the younger brother also spoke, and said, “O man! Our mother said that if we eat this roe, she will strike us.” Thus he said. Then the handsome man just said “Oh your mother is just fooling you, therefore she does not want you to eat this roe. Go on, and eat it!” thus he said. The children just said they were afraid of their parents. Then the handsome man spoke again and said “O children! go on, and eat this roe. As soon as your mother scolds you, just go to the other the beach to-night. Then call aloud and say thus: what season is this, Apetax [this word seems to be a mistranslation], ah Apetax. Is the season where herrings spawn , Apetax? Thus you say,” he said. Immediately the children took the four pieces of roe and ate them. When they had eaten all the roe, the handsome man went out of the house.

He had not been gone long before the parents of the children come down to the beach and the children were already afraid of their parents when they should come into the house. Then the younger brother said that he would be the only one to speak to their parents. Now the parents came in. Immediately their mother spoke, and said, “O children! go and take the roe and smell of it, for probably you feel hungry, for you never had any breakfast.” Thus she said. Immediately the younger one replied, and said “Oh, my dear! A handsome man came into our house and he told us to go ahead and eat the roe. We only ate the roe when he had been in the house for a long time, asking us to eat it: and as soon as we finished eating it, he went out” thus said the child to his mother. As soon as the child stopped speaking, the women took a pair of tongs and struck her children. When she had finished striking her children, the were hardly alive. The children lay flat on the ground in the house

It was a long time before night came. Then the younger one thought if the words of the handsome man, and he called his elder brother, and said, “Oh, let us go to the other side of the beach”. Thus he said. Immediately the elder brother also remembered the words of the handsome man that he had said to them. Immediately they arose and went to the other side of the beach of the village. Then the two children looked up to the moon, which was above. Then the younger brother shouted aloud and said “: what season is this, Apetax, ah Apetax. Is the season where herrings spawn, Apetax?” thus he said. They never saw the handsome man. Then the elder brother spoke also, and followed the words of his younger brother. They never saw the handsome man. The younger one shouted again, and said again, Apetax, Apetax, what season is this, Apetax, ah Apetax. Is the season where herrings spawn, Apetax?”. The he stopped speaking, and listened for Apetax to answer them; but they hardly heard an answer. Then two boys felt badly; and the elders on said again, “O brother! Evidently Apetax does not hear us. Let us try to shout louder” thus he said when he began to shout louder. He said again Apetax, Apetax, ah Apetax what season is this, Apetax, ah Apetax. Is the season where herrings spawn, Apetax?” thus he said. Then he stopped speaking.

As soon as he stopped speaking, they heard many herring splashing on the beach, and immediately the two boys went down to the beach and tried to catch the herrings. They did not get them. Then the elder brother took his cape and tried to scoop the herrings up, but he could not do it. Then, however, the younger brother planned that he would kick gravel to make four holes (in it). The two boys just took the herrings and put them on the beach. As soon as the tide turned, the elder brother sent his younger brother to call his parents to carry the many herrings up from the beach. The younger brother went at once, but in vain. The child said to his parents, “Don’t sleep! Come and help us carry up the many herrings”. Thus he said, but in vain. His father just took the tongs and struck his son. Then the man drove him away, for he said that he was just lying.

The boy just returned to his elder brother and reported to him. Then the elder brother started and tried to call to his parents, and he also was just struck. Then he too went back again to place where his younger brother was. The boys had not been gone out long before their mother spoke, and said to her husband “don’t let us stay in the house this way! Let us rather go and look for our children, for it might be really true, what they said” thus she said. Then her husband aroused and went. He went right to where his children were making a noise. As soon as he reached his children, he saw many herrings piled up on the beach. At once he went back to his house to call his wife. They took baskets and started to the place where the children were, and began to carry the herrings on their backs, and took them to their house. It was not yet daylight when they had all the many herrings into the house. In the mourning, when day came, the people learned what they had been doing. At once they came to sell their slaves and canoes; and they offered their daughters to have Wealth-Maker for their husband, for that was the name of the father of the two children; and the tribe was really starving. Then Wealth-Maker had really much (property), for they sold everything that was offered. Immediately he gave a potlatch to his tribe. Then he really was a chief. That is the end.”