The Sliammon people, along with other native tribes,
had no written language and therefore stories of
tribal origin, history, achievements and newly
learned facts had to be passed on verbally from one
generation to thenext through myths and legends.
Story telling was an essential part of the cultural
heritage of the native. Gathered around the lodge
fires during the long winter evenings, children
listened to myths and legends reaching way back
into Sliammon history and the young minds became the
storage source for all the passed on knowledge.

Myths and legends also formed the basis for the
ceremonial songs  and spirit dances took  place inside
of long  houses when the  people gathered together
for the winter ceremonies.

Mink had many wives in his lifetime. He wanted to marry
many things. One day he was watching the clouds in the
sky and one cloud was very beautiful, soft and white
and gentle.

"I love you," Mink said to Cloud. "I want to marry you."

"I can't marry you," said the little white cloud.
"You do not know what I am like when there is a storm.
I am not always soft white and fluffy. Sometimes when the
wind is strong I am grey thin and ragged. Sometimes I am
scattered into small pieces all across the sky. You would
have a hard time keeping me together in those times."

"Please let me marry you," Mink insisted. "I will love you
even when you're grey and thin and ragged. I will hold you
together in all of the storms."

Finally one lovely sunny day Mink and Cloud were married.

They floated together for many days. They floated in the
warm blue skies and they floated in the cool starry nights.

But one day a wind storm came and the little white cloud
started to break up in small pieces of fluff. Poor Mink
did not know what to do. He began jumping from one small
cloud piece to another, but each cloud piece became thin
and wispy. Mink had nothing to stand on, nothing to hang
onto.

"Help!" he yelled as he fell to the ground.

He landed on a pebble beach and was knocked out cold. He
lay on the rocks for several hours. In time, flies came
and settled around his mouth.

Later that day a group of children came down to the beach
to play. "Look! Mink is dead!" one of the girls called when
she found Mink's body lying flat and still on the ground.
The other children gathered around Mink. They were shocked
to see Mink's face. Some of the children started to cry.
"Poor dead Mink," they crooned. "Poor dead Mink."

Suddenly Mink sat right up straight. "Who is dead?" he demanded;
and scared the children half-to-death.

"We thought YOU were dead," they explained. They were happy to
see that Mink was alive. It was wonderful. They played with him awhile,
and they ran off to do something else.

Mink was alone. He sat down on a large rock and thought and
thought. "I will never marry a cloud again," he said. 
"I will never marry a gull or a raven or anything that flies.
I will not marry a rainbow or a star. From now on I will
find a wife on the ground."

Mink stood up and looked at the sky. Cloud was becoming
full and fluffy again, but Mink knew their marriage could
not work. "Good-bye!" he called to her, and
she smiled wisely.

Mink set off to search for a new wife.