rang
from his shelter and drove two heavy war arrows deep under its wing.
Uttering hoarse cries of rage, and spreading his broad wings, the
thunderbird floated away like a cloud in the sky, far into the
northland, and was never seen again.

Having taken blood vengeance, the hunter went down into the nest where
among ribs of old canoes and other bones he found some fragments of
his wife, which he carried to the water's edge and, building a fire,
made food offerings and libations of water such as would be pleasing
to her ghost.

XXVI

RAVEN MAKES AN OCEAN VOYAGE

One day Raven was sitting on a cliff near the sea when he saw a large
whale passing close along the shore.

"I have an idea!" said he. "I'm going to try something new." Then he
called out to the whale, "When you come up again, shut your eyes and
open your mouth wide, and I'll put something in it."

Then he drew down his mask, put his drill for making fire under his
wing, and flew out over the water. Very soon the whale came up again
and did as he had been told. Raven, seeing the wide open mouth, flew
straight down the whale's throat. The whale closed his mouth, gave a
great gulp, and down he went to the bottom of the sea.

Raven stood up, pushed up his beak, and looking about, found himself
at the entrance to a fine room, at one end of which burned a lamp. He
went in and was surprised to see a beautiful young woman sitting
there. The place was clean and dry, the roof being supported by the
whale's spine, while its ribs formed the walls. The lamp was supplied
from a tube that extended along the whale's backbone, from which oil
constantly but slowly dripped into the lamp.

When Raven stepped in, the woman started up in alarm and cried out,
"How came you here? You are the first man who ever came into my
house."

"I came in through the whale's throat," said Raven as politely as he
knew how, for the woman was young and fair to look upon. Moreover, he
had already guessed that she was the _inua_ or spirit of the whale. "I
should like to stay a while."

"As you cannot get out at present, it seems that you will have to
stay. Whether you like it, or whether I like it, you appear to be my
guest, so I must prepare food for you."

She brought food which she served with berries and oil. "These are
berries which I gathered last summer," she said.

For four days he remained there as the guest of the whale's spirit,
and found it a very pleasant experience