Chapter II: Hyperboreans (6)

[155] 'Der Eingang, ziemlich hoch von der Erde, besteht aus einem kleinen runden Loche.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 25. 'Ils se construisent des maisons de bois ou de terre pour l'hiver.' _Laplace_, _Circumnav._, vol. vi., p. 87. 'The barabaras of the Sitcan people are of a square form, and spacious. The sides are of planks; and the roof resembles that of a Russian house.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 239. 'Habitan estos Indios en chozas ó rancherías de tablas muy desabrigadas.' _Sutil y Mexicana_, _Viage_, p. cxvi. At Sitka the roof 'rests upon ten or twelve thick posts driven into the ground, and the sides of the house are composed of broad thick planks fastened to the same posts.' _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 129. 'Dans l'intérieur des terres, des habitations bien construites, spacieuses et commodes.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 74. 'Shanties on a large scale.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 100. 'Their huts are made of a few boards, which they take away with them when they go to their winter quarters. It is very surprising to see how well they will shape their boards with the shocking tools they employ; some of them being full 10 feet long, 2½ feet broad, and not more than an inch thick.' _Portlock's Voy._, p. 292. 'High, large, and roomy, built of wood, with the hearth in the middle, and the sides divided into as many compartments as there are families living under the roof.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 410. 'Lebt in Schoppen aus Balken gebaut, wo an den Seiten für jede Familie besondere Plätze abgetheilt sind, in der Mitte aber Feuer für alle zusammen angemacht wird. So pflegen gemeiniglich 2 bis 6 Familien eine einzige Scheune einzunehmen.' _Baer's Ethn. u. Stat._, p. 97.

[156] 'Vingt-cinq pieds de long sur quinze à vingt pieds de large.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 220. 'Roof in the whole with the bark of trees.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 53. 'Las casas en que estos habitan en las playas son de poca consideracion y ninguna subsistencia.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 49. 'A few poles stuck in the ground, without order or regularity.' _Dixon's Voy._, p. 172. 'Gebäude besteht aus langen, sorgfältig behauenen Brettern, die kartenhausartig über einander gestellt, an zahlreichen in die Erde gesteckten Stangen befestigt, recht eigentlich ein hölzernes Zelt bilden. Es hat die Form einer länglichen Barake mit zwei Giebeln.' _Kittlitz_, _Reise_, vol. i., pp. 220, 221.

[157] All kinds of fish; 'such as salmon, mussels, and various other shell-fish, sea-otters, seals and porpoises; the blubber of the porpoise, they are remarkably fond of, and indeed the flesh of any animal that comes in their way.' _Portlock's Voy._, p. 290. 'Vom Meere, an dessen Ufern sie sich stets ansiedeln, erhalten sie ihre hauptsächlichste Nahrung; einige Wurzeln, Gräser u. Beeren gehören nur zu den Leckerbissen des Sommers.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 22. Cakes made of bark of spruce-fir, mixed with roots, berries, and train-oil. For salt they use sea-water. Never eat whale-fat. _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 131. At Sitka, summer food consists of berries, fresh fish, and flesh of amphibious animals. Winter food, of dried salmon, train-oil, and the spawn of fish, especially herrings. _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 239. 'Sus alimentos se reducen á pescado cocido ó asado ya fresco ó ya seco, varias hierbas y raizes.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 50. They chew 'a plant which appears to be a species of tobacco.' _Dixon's Voy._, p. 175. 'Sont couverts de vermine; ils font une chasse assidue à ces animaux dévorans, mais pour les dévorer eux-mêmes.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 52. 'Tägliche Nahrung der Einwohner--sind hauptsächtlich Fische, doch häufig auch Mollusken und Echinodermen.' _Kittlitz_, _Reise_, vol. i., p. 222.

[158] 'Le poisson frais ou fumé, les oeufs séchés de poisson.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 62. 'Is sometimes cooked upon red-hot stones, but more commonly eaten raw.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 53. 'Not so expert in hunting as the Aleutians. Their principal mode is that of shooting the sea animals as they lie asleep.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 242. They boil their victuals in wooden vessels, by constantly putting red-hot stones into the water. _Portlock's Voy._, p. 291. 'Das Kochen geschieht jetzt in eisernen Kesseln, vor der Bekanntschaft mit den Russen aber wurden dazu aus Wurzeln geflochtene Körbe angewandt.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 23.

[159] To their fishing lines, bladders are fastened, 'which float upon the surface of the water, so that one person can attend to fourteen or fifteen lines.' _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 134. 'Ils pêchent, comme nous, en barrant les rivières, ou à la ligne.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 232. 'For taking the spawn, they use the branches of the pine-tree, to which it easily adheres, and on which it is afterwards dried. It is then put into baskets, or holes purposely dug in the ground, till wanted.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 239. 'Su comun alimento es el salmon, y es ingenioso el método que tienen de pescarle.' _Sutil y Mexicana_, _Viage_, p. cxvii. 'Their lines are very strong, being made of the sinews or intestines of animals.' _Dixon's Voy._, p. 174. 'Die Riesenbutte, die in Sitcha bisweilen ein Gewicht von 10 bis 12 Pud erreicht, wird aus der Tiefe mit grossen hölzernen Angeln, die mit Widerhaken aus Eisen oder Knochen versehen sind, herausgezogen. Die Angelschnur besteht aus an einander geknüpften Fucusstängeln.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 32.

[160] 'Bows and arrows were formerly their only weapons; now, besides their muskets, they have daggers, and knives half a yard long.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 55. Their weapons were bows, arrows, and spears. _Dixon's Voy._, p. 67. 'Leur lances dont l'ancienne forme n'est pas connue, est à présent composée de deux pièces: de la hampe, longue de quinze ou dix-huit pieds, et du fer qui ne le cède en rien à celui de la hallebarde de parade dont étoit armé un Suisse de paroisse.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 68. Knives, some two feet long, shaped almost like a dagger, with a ridge in the middle. Worn in skin sheaths hung by a thong to the neck under their robe, probably used only as weapons. _Cook's Third Voy._, vol. ii., p. 373. 'Las armas ofensivas que generalmente usan son las flechas, lanzas de seis y ocho varas de largo con lenguetas de fierro.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 46. 'The daggers used in battle are made to stab with either end, having three, four or five inches above the hand tapered to a sharp point; but the upper part of those used in the Sound and River is excurvated.' _Portlock's Voy._, p. 261. 'Principally bows and arrows.' _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 131. 'Sus armas se reducen al arco, la flecha y el puñal que traen siempre consigo.' _Sutil y Mexicana_, _Viage_, p. cxvii. 'Comme nous examinions très attentivement tous ces poignards, ils nous firent signe qu'ils n'en faisaient usage que contre les ours et les autres bêtes des forêts.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 172. 'Der Dolch ist sehr breit und hat zwei geschliffene Blätter auf jeder Seite des Griffes, das obere jedoch nur ein Viertel von der Länge des unteren.' 'Beide Blätter oder Klingen sind mit ledernen Scheiden versehen.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 28.

[161] 'A kind of jacket, or coat of mail, made of thin laths, bound together with sinews, which makes it quite flexible, though so close as not to admit an arrow or dart.' _Cook's Third Voy._, vol. ii., p. 372. 'Für den Krieg besitzen die Kaloschen auch von Holz gearbeitete Schutzwaffen: Brustharnische, Sturmhauben und seltsam geschnitzte Visire, mit grellen Farben bemalte Fratzengesichter darstellen.' _Kittlitz_, _Reise_, vol. i., p. 216.

[162] 'They never attack their enemies openly.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 55. 'Les guerriers tués ou faits prisonniers à la guerre, passent également sous la dent de leurs vainqueurs qui, en dévorant une proie aussi distinguée, croient y puiser de nouvelles forces, une nouvelle énergie.' _Laplace_, _Circumnav._, tom. vi., p. 155.

[163] 'Bien hechas de una pieza con su falca sobre las bordas.' _Perez_, _Nav._, MS. p. 17. 'On n'est pas moins étonné de leur stabilité: malgré la légèreté et le peu de largeur de la coque, elles n'ont pas besoin d'être soutenues par des balanciers, et jamais on ne les accouple.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 72. 'Las regulares canoas de que se sirven son de pino, y no tienen mas capacidad que la que basta para contener una familia, sin embargo que las hay sumamente grandes.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 48. 'Rudely excavated and reduced to no particular shape, but each end has the resemblance of a butcher's tray.' _Dixon's Voy._, p. 173. 'Their canoes are much inferior to those of the lower coast, while their skin "baidarkes" (kyacks) are not equal to those of Norton Sound and the northern coast.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 101. At Cook's Inlet, 'their canoes are sheathed with the bark of trees.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 188. These canoes 'were made from a solid tree, and many of them appeared to be from 50 to 70 feet in length, but very narrow, being no broader than the tree itself.' _Meares' Voy._, p. xxxviii. 'Their boat was the body of a large pine tree, neatly excavated, and tapered away towards the ends, until they came to a point, and the fore-part somewhat higher than the after-part; indeed, the whole was finished in a neat and very exact manner.' _Portlock's Voy._, p. 259.

[164] 'Ont fait beaucoup plus de progrès dans les arts que dans la morale.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 233. Thlinkeet women make baskets of bark of trees, and grass, that will hold water. _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 132. They have tolerable ideas of carving, most utensils having sculptures, representing some animal. _Portlock's Voy._, p. 294. 'Ces peintures, ces sculptures, telles qu'elles sont, on en voit sur tous leurs meubles.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 71. 'De la vivacidad de su genio y del afecto al cambio se debe inferir son bastantemente laboriosos.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 48. 'Tienen lana blanca cuya especie ignoraron.' _Perez_, _Nav._, MS. p. 16. 'Masks very ingeniously cut in wood, and painted with different colors.' A rattle, 'very well finished, both as to sculpture and painting.' 'One might suppose these productions the work of a people greatly advanced in civilization.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, pp. 150, 241. 'Found some square patches of ground in a state of cultivation, producing a plant that appeared to be a species of tobacco.' _Vancouver's Voy._, vol. iii., p. 256.

[165] 'The skins of the sea-otters form their principal wealth, and are a substitute for money.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 54. 'In one place they discovered a considerable hoard of woolen cloth, and as much dried fish as would have loaded 150 bidarkas.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 160.

[166] 'Le Gouvernement des Tchinkitânéens paroîtroit donc se rapprocher du Gouvernement patriarchal.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 83. 'De su gobierno pensamos cuando mas, oiendo el modo de someterse á algunos viejos, seria oligárhico.' _Bodega y Quadra_, _Nav._, MS. p. 50. 'Though the toyons have power over their subjects, it is a very limited power, unless when an individual of extraordinary abilities starts up, who is sure to rule despotically.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 243. 'Chaque famille semble vivre d'une manière isolée et avoir un régime particulier.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. iv., p. 61. 'Ces Conseils composés des vieillards.' _Laplace_, _Circumnav._, tom. vi., p. 155.

[167] Tribes are distinguished by the color and character of their paint. _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 51. They 'are divided into tribes; the principal of which assume to themselves titles of distinction, from the names of the animals they prefer; as the tribe of the bear, of the eagle, etc. The tribe of the wolf are called _Coquontans_, and have many privileges over the other tribes.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, pp. 238, 242.

[168] 'The women possess a predominant influence, and acknowledged superiority over the other sex.' _Meares' Voy._, p. 323. 'Parmi eux les femmes jouissent d'une certaine considération.' _Laplace_, _Circumnav._, tom. vi., p. 87. They treat their wives and children with much affection and tenderness, and the women keep the treasures. _Portlock's Voy._, p. 290. The Kalush 'finds his filthy countrywomen, with their lip-troughs, so charming, that they often awaken in him the most vehement passion.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 56. 'It is certain that industry, reserve, modesty, and conjugal fidelity, are the general characteristics of the female sex among these people.' _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 133. 'Quoiqu'elles vivent sous la domination d'hommes très-féroces, je n'ai pas vu qu'elles en fussent traitées d'une manière aussi barbare que le prétendent la plupart des voyageurs.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. iv., p. 61.

[169] 'Weddings are celebrated merely by a feast, given to the relatives of the bride.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 57.

[170] 'Ils ne s'écartent jamais de deux pas pour aucun besoin; ils ne cherchent dans ces occasions ni l'ombre ni le mystère; ils continuent la conversation qu'ils ont commencée, comme s'ils n'avaient pas un instant à perdre; et lorsque c'est pendant le repas, ils reprennent leur place, dont ils n'ont jamais été éloignés d'une toise.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 221.

[171] 'Ont un goût décidé pour le chant.' _Marchand_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 75. 'The women sit upon the ground at a distance of some paces from the dancers, and sing a not inharmonious melody, which supplies the place of music.' _Langsdorff's Voy._, pt. ii., p. 114. 'They dance and sing continually.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 240. Besides the tambourine, Captain Belcher saw a castanet and 'a new musical instrument, composed of three hoops, with a cross in the centre, the circumference being closely strung with the beaks of the Alca arctica.' _Voy._, vol. i., p. 103.

[172] They lose at this game all their possessions, and even their wives and children, who then become the property of the winner.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 62. 'Ce jeu les rend tristes et sérieux.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 235.

[173] Upon one tomb, 'formaba una figura grande y horrorosa que tenia entre sus garras una caxa.' _Sutil y Mexicana_, _Viage_, p. cxviii. 'The box is frequently decorated with two or three rows of small shells.' _Dixon's Voy._, p. 176. 'The dead are burned, and their ashes preserved in small wooden boxes, in buildings appropriated to that purpose.' _Kotzebue's New Voy._, vol. ii., p. 57. 'Nos voyageurs rencontrèrent aussi un morai qui leur prouva que ces Indiens étaient dans l'usage de brûler les morts et d'en conserver la tête.' _La Pérouse_, _Voy._, tom. ii., p. 205. 'On the death of a toyon, or other distinguished person, one of his slaves is deprived of life, and burned with him.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 241.

[174] Called by Gallatin, in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 17, _Athapasca_, the name 'first given to the central part of the country they inhabit.' Sir John Richardson, _Jour._, vol. ii., p. 1, calls them 'Tinnè, or 'Dtinnè, Athabascans or Chepewyans.' 'They style themselves generally Dinneh men, or Indians.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., p. 241.

[175] _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., pp. 1-33.

[176] 'Les Indiens de la côte ou de la Nouvelle Calédonie, les Tokalis, les Chargeurs (Carriers) les Schouchouaps, les Atnas, appartiennent tous à la nation des Chipeouaïans dont la langue est en usage dans le nord du Continent jusqu'à la baie d'Hudson et à la Mer Polaire.' _Mofras_, _Explor._, tom. ii., p. 337.

[177] Are 'known under the names of _Loucheux_, _Digothi_, and _Kutshin_.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 292. 'They are called Deguthee Dinees, or the _Quarrellers_.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 51. 'On Peel's River they name themselves _Kutchin_, the final _n_ being nasal and faintly pronounced.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 378. They are also called _Tykothee-dinneh_, Loucheux or Quarrellers. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 83. 'The Loucheux proper is spoken by the Indians of Peel's River. All the tribes inhabiting the valley of the Youkon understand one another.' _Hardisty_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 311.

[178] Gallatin, in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 17, erroneously ruled the Loucheux out of his Athabasca nation. 'Im äussersten Nordosten hat uns Gallatin aufmerksam gemacht auf das Volk der Loucheux, Zänker-Indianer oder Digothi: an der Mündung des Mackenzie-Flusses, nach Einigen zu dessen beiden Seiten (westliche und östliche): dessen Sprache er nach den Reisenden für fremd den athapaskischen hielt: worüber sich die neuen Nachrichten noch widersprechen.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 713. Franklin, _Nar._, vol. ii., p. 83, allies the Loucheux to the Eskimos.

[179] Tnai, 'man;' Tnaina Ttynai, Thnaina, Kinai, Kenai, Kenaize.

[180] See notes on Boundaries at the end of this chapter.

[181] Besides the 'Umkwa,' being outlying members of the Athabaskan stock,' there are the 'Navahoe, the Jecorilla, the Panalero, along with the Apatsh of New Mexico, California, and Sonora. To these add the Hoopah of California, which is also Athabaskan.' _Latham's Comp. Phil._, p. 393.

[182] William W. Turner was the first to assert positively that the Apaches spoke a language which belongs to the Athabascan family. _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 316.

[183] Face 'oval.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 180. 'Broad faces, projecting cheek-bones, and wide nostrils.' _Id._, vol. i., p. 242. Foreheads low, chin long. _Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 524. An exact compound between the Usquemows and Western Indians. _Barrow's Geog. Hudson Bay_, p. 33.

[184] Generally more than medium size. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 305. 'Well proportioned, and about the middle size.' _Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 524. 'Long-bodied, with short, stout limbs.' _Ross_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 304.

[185] 'Dingy copper.' _Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 526. 'Swarthy.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxix. Dingy brown, copper cast. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 305. 'Very fresh and red.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 180. 'Dirty yellowish ochre tinge.' _Ross_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 304.

[186] 'Small, fine eyes and teeth.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., 242.

[187] 'Hair lank, but not always of a dingy black. Men in general extract their beard, though some of them are seen to prefer a bushy, black beard, to a smooth chin.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxix. Beard in the aged 'between two and three inches long, and perfectly white.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 180. 'Black, strait, and coarse.' _Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 524. 'Neither sex have any hair under their armpits, and very little on any other part of the body, particularly the women; but on the place where Nature plants the hair, I never knew them attempt to eradicate it.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 306.

[188] Tattooing appears to be universal among the Kutchins. _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 419. The Chepewyans tattooed 'by entering an awl or needle under the skin, and, on drawing it out again, immediately rubbing powdered charcoal into the wound.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 306. 'Both sexes have blue or black bars, or from one to four straight lines on their cheeks or forehead, to distinguish the tribe to which they belong.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxx.

[189] Women 'destitute of real beauty.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 89. 'Very inferior aspect.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 8. Women nasty. _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 126. 'Positively hideous.' _Ross_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 304.

[190] A Deer-Horn Mountaineer's dress 'consisted of a shirt, or jacket with a hood, wide breeches, reaching only to the knee, and tight leggins sewed to the shoes, all of deer's skins.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 180. The cap consists of the skin of a deer's head. _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxii.

[191] As witness this speech of a noble chief: 'Women were made for labor; one of them can carry, or haul, as much as two men can do. They also pitch our tents, make and mend our clothing, keep us warm at night; and, in fact, there is no such thing as traveling any considerable distance, in this country without their assistance.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 55.

[192] An Indian desiring another one's wife, fights with her husband, principally by pulling hair. If victorious, he pays a number of skins to the husband. _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 303.

[193] 'Continence in an unmarried female is scarcely considered a virtue.' 'Their dispositions are not amatory.' 'I have heard among them of two sons keeping their mother as a common wife, of another wedded to his daughter, and of several married to their sisters. _Ross_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 310. Women carry their children on the back next the skin, and suckle them until another is born. They do not suspend their ordinary occupations for child-birth. _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxii. 'A temporary interchange of wives is not uncommon; and the offer of their persons is considered as a necessary part of the hospitality due to strangers.' _Id._, p. xcvi. Women are 'rather the slaves than the companions of the men.' _Bell's Geog._, vol. v., p. 293.

[194] They are harsh towards their wives, except when enceinte. They are accused of abandoning the aged and sick, but only one case came to his knowledge. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., pp. 250, 251.

[195] Beeatee, prepared from deer only, 'is a kind of haggis, made with the blood, a good quantity of fat shred small, some of the tenderest of the flesh, together with the heart and lungs cut, or more commonly cut into small shivers; all of which is put into the stomach, and roasted.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 144. 'Not remarkable for their activity as hunters, owing to the ease with which they snare deer and spear fish.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxiii. The Deer-Horn Mountaineers 'repair to the sea in spring and kill seals; as the season advances, they hunt deer and musk oxen at some distance from the coast. They approach the deer either by crawling, or by leading these animals by ranges of turf towards the spot where the archer can conceal himself.' Do not use nets, but the hook and line. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 181. 'Nets made of lines of twisted willow-bark, or thin strips of deer-hide.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 25. Curdled blood, a favorite dish. _Simpson's Nar._, p. 324.

[196] The weapons of the Chepewyans are bows and arrows; stone and bone axes and knives. _Harmon's Jour._, p. 183. The bows of the Deer-Horns 'are formed of three pieces of fir, the centre piece alone bent, the other two lying in the same straight line with the bowstring; the pieces are neatly tied together with sinew. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 180. In preparing for an attack, each Coppermine Indian paints his shield with figures of Sun, Moon, or some animal or imaginary beings, each portraying whatever character he most relies upon. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 148. In some parts hunting grounds descend by inheritance, and the right of property is rigidly enforced. _Simpson's Nar._, p. 75.

[197] 'Their cooking utensils are made of pot-stone, and they form very neat dishes of fir.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 181. Make fishing-lines and nets of green deer-thongs. _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxvi.

[198] 'They are great mimics.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 13. Men dance naked; women dressed. A crowd stand in a straight line, and shuffle from right to left without moving the feet from the ground. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 335. 'The men occasionally howl in imitation of some animal.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 35.

[199] 'They manifest no common respect to the memory of their departed friends, by a long period of mourning, cutting off their hair, and never making use of the property of the deceased.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxviii. The death of leading men is attributed to conjuring. They never bury the dead, but leave them, where they die, for wild beasts to devour. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 341. The Chepewyans bury their dead. When mourning for relatives they gash their bodies with knives. _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., pp. 21, 22.

[200] 'The Northern Indians seldom attain a great age, though they have few diseases.' _Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 525. For inward complaints, the doctors blow zealously into the rectum, or adjacent parts. _Hearne's Trav._, p. 189. The conjurer shuts himself up for days with the patient, without food, and sings over him. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 41. Medicine-men or conjurers are at the same time doctors. _Hooper's Tuski_, pp. 317, 318. 'The Kutchins practice blood-letting _ad libitum_.' _Jones_, _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 325. 'Their principal maladies are rheumatic pains, the flux, and consumption.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxiv.

[201] According to the report of the Dog-ribs, the Mountain Indians are cannibals, casting lots for victims in time of scarcity. _Simpson's Nar._, p. 188. 'Instances of suicide, by hanging, frequently occur among the women.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 198. During times of starvation, which occur quite frequently, the Slavé Indians eat their families. _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 303. 'These people take their names, in the first instance, from their dogs. A young man is the father of a certain dog, but when he is married, and has a son, he styles himself the father of the boy. The women have a habit of reproving the dogs very tenderly when they observe them fighting. "Are you not ashamed," say they, "to quarrel with your little brother?"' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., pp. 85, 86. 'Whether circumcision be practiced among them, I cannot pretend to say, but the appearance of it was general among those whom I saw.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 36. Dog-rib Indians, sometimes also called Slavés, 'a name properly meaning 'strangers.' _Gallatin_, in _Am. Arch. Soc. Trans._, vol. ii., p. 19.

[202] 'Order is maintained in the tribe solely by public opinion.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 26. The chiefs are now totally without power. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., p. 247. 'They are influenced, more or less, by certain principles which conduce to their general benefit.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. cxxv.

[203] 'Many consider a broth, made by means of the dung of the cariboo and the hare, to be a dainty dish.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 324. They 'are lazy, dirty, and sensual,' and extremely uncivilized. 'Their habits and persons are equally disgusting.' _Domenech's Deserts_, vol. ii., p. 62. 'They are a tall, well formed, good-looking race.' _Nicolay's Ogn. Ter._, p. 154. 'An utter contempt of cleanliness prevailed on all hands, and it was revolting to witness their voracious endeavors to surpass each other in the gluttonous contest.' _Ind. Life_, p. 156.

[204] The women 'run a wooden pin through their noses.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 287. At their burial ceremonies they smear the face 'with a composition of fish-oil and charcoal.' When conjuring, the chief and his companions 'wore a kind of coronet formed of the inverted claws of the grizzly bear.' _Ind. Life_, pp. 127, 158.

[205] The Tacullies have 'wooden dishes, and other vessels of the rind of the birch and pine trees.' 'Have also other vessels made of small roots or fibres of the cedar or pine tree, closely laced together, which serve them as buckets to put water in.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 292.

[206] 'In the summer season both sexes bathe often; and this is the only time, when the married people wash themselves.' The Tacullies are very fond and very jealous of their wives, 'but to their daughters, they allow every liberty, for the purpose, as they say, of keeping the young men from intercourse with the married women.' _Harmon's Jour._, pp. 289, 292, 293. A father, whose daughter had dishonored him, killed her and himself. _Ind. Life_, 184.

[207] 'The people of every village have a certain extent of country, which they consider their own, and in which they may hunt and fish; but they may not transcend these bounds, without purchasing the privilege of those who claim the land. Mountains and rivers serve them as boundaries.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 298.

[208] Mackenzie, _Voy._, p. 238, found on Fraser River, about latitude 55°, a deserted house, 30 by 20, with three doors, 3 by 3½ feet; three fire-places, and beds on either side; behind the beds was a narrow space, like a manger, somewhat elevated, for keeping fish. 'Their houses are well formed of logs of small trees, buttressed up internally, frequently above seventy feet long and fifteen high, but, unlike those of the coast, the roof is of bark; their winter habitations are smaller, and often covered over with grass and earth; some even dwell in excavations of the ground, which have only an aperture at the top, and serves alike for door and chimney.' _Nicolay's Ogn. Ter._, p. 154.

[209] 'Quelques peuplades du nord, telles que les Sikanis, enterrent leurs morts.' _Mofras_, _Explor._, tom. ii., p. 339. 'The Sicaunies bury, while the Tacullies, burn their dead.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 196. They 'and the Chimmesyans on the coast, and other tribes speaking their language, burn the dead.' _Lord's Nat._, vol. ii., p. 236. See also _Dunn's Oregon_, pp. 79, 80; _Ind. Life_, pp. 128, 136; _Domenech's Deserts_, vol. ii., pp. 362, 363.

[210] They fire guns as a warning to their friends not to invade their sorrow. _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 139.

[211] 'In the winter season, the Carriers often keep their dead in their huts during five or six months, before they will allow them to be burned.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 249.

[212] 'She must frequently put her hands through the flames and lay them upon his bosom, to show her continued devotion.' _Parker's Explor. Tour_, p. 239. They have a custom of mourning over the grave of the dead; their expressions of grief are generally exceedingly vociferous. _Ind. Life_, pp. 185, 186.

[213] 'On the end of a pole stuck in front of the lodge.' _Lord's Nat._, vol. ii., p. 237.

[214] Women cut off a joint of one of their fingers. Men only cut off their hair close to their heads, but also frequently cut and scratch their faces and arms. _Harmon's Jour._, p. 182. With some sharp instrument they 'force back the flesh beyond the first joint, which they immediately amputate.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 148.

[215] 'The men are completely destitute of beard, and both men and women, are intensely ugly.' _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 320. 'They reminded me of the ideal North American Indian I had read of but never seen.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 239. Distinguished from all other tribes for the frankness and candor of their demeanor, and bold countenances. _Simpson's Nar._, p. 100. 'Males are of the average hight of Europeans, and well-formed, with regular features, high foreheads, and lighter complexions than those of the other red Indians. The women resemble the men.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 379.

[216] 'Tunic or shirt reaching to the knees, and very much ornamented with beads, and Hyaqua shells from the Columbia.' _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 418. The Tenan Kutchins are 'gay with painted faces, feathers in their long hair, patches of red clay at the back of their head.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 239. Jackets like the Eskimos. _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 221. 'Both sexes wear breeches.' _Simpson's Nar._, p. 103.

[217] 'The Kutch-a-Kutchin, are essentially traders.' _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 418. Appear to care more for useful than ornamental articles. _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 213. 'Dentalium and arenicola shells are transmitted from the west coast in traffic, and are greatly valued.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 391.

[218] Some wear 'wampum (a kind of long, hollow shell) through the septum of the nose.' _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 270. They pierce the nose and insert shells, which are obtained from the Eskimos at a high price. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 84.

[219] The Loucheux live in huts 'formed of green branches. In winter their dwellings are partly under ground. The spoils of the moose and reindeer furnish them with meat, clothing, and tents.' _Simpson's Nar._, pp. 103, 191. The Co-Yukon winter dwellings are made under ground, and roofed over with earth, having a hole for the smoke to escape by, in the same manner as those of the Malemutes and Ingaliks. _Whymper's Alaska_, pp. 175, 205. Their movable huts are constructed of deer-skin, 'dressed with the hair on, and sewed together, forming two large rolls, which are stretched over a frame of bent poles,' with a side door and smoke-hole at the top. _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 321.

[220] The Loucheux are 'great gormandizers, and will devour solid fat, or even drink grease, to surfeiting.' _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 271. 'The bears are not often eaten in summer, as their flesh is not good at that time.' _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 321. Some of their reindeer-pounds are over one hundred years old and are hereditary in the family. _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 394. 'The mode of fishing through the ice practiced by the Russians is much in vogue with them.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 211.

[221] The Kutchins 'have no knowledge of scalping.' 'When a man kills his enemy, he cuts all his joints.' _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, 327. The Loucheux of Peel River and the Eskimos are constantly at war. _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 273.

[222] 'At Peace River the bark is taken off the tree the whole length of the intended canoe, which is commonly about eighteen feet, and is sewed with watupe at both ends.' _Mackenzie's Voy._, p. 207. When the Kutchins discover a leak, 'they go ashore, light a small fire, warm the gum, of which they always carry a supply, turn the canoe bottom upward, and rub the healing balm in a semi-fluid state into the seam until it is again water-tight.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 225. The Tacullies 'make canoes which are clumsily wrought, of the aspin tree, as well as of the bark of the spruce fir.' _Harmon's Jour._, p. 291. Rafts are employed on the Mackenzie. _Simpson's Nar._, p. 185. 'In shape the Northern Indian canoe bears some resemblance to a weaver's shuttle; covered over with birch bark.' _Hearne's Jour._, pp. 97, 98. 'Kanots aus Birkenrinde, auf denen sie die Flüsse u. Seen befahren.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 112. The Kutchin canoe 'is flat-bottomed, is about nine feet long and one broad, and the sides nearly straight up and down like a wall.' _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 323.

[223] As for instance for a life, the fine is forty beaver-skins, and may be paid in guns at twenty skins each; blankets, equal to ten skins each; powder, one skin a measure; bullets, eighteen for a skin; worsted belts, two skins each. _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 272. 'For theft, little or no punishment is inflicted; for adultery, the woman only is punished'--sometimes by beating, sometimes by death. _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 325.

[224] Kutchin 'female chastity is prized, but is nearly unknown.' _Jones_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 325. Loucheux mothers had originally a custom of casting away their female children, but now it is only done by the Mountain Indians, _Simpson's Nar._, p. 187. The Kutchin 'women are much fewer in number and live a much shorter time than the men.' _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 418. The old people 'are not ill-used, but simply neglected.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 229. The children are carried in small chairs made of birch bark. _Id._, p. 232. 'In a seat of birch bark.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 384.

[225] The Loucheux dances 'abound in extravagant gestures, and demand violent exertion.' _Simpson's Nar._, p. 100. See _Hardisty_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 313. 'Singing is much practiced, but it is, though varied, of a very hum-drum nature.' _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 318. 'At the festivals held on the meeting of friendly tribes, leaping and wrestling are practised.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 395.

[226] 'Irrespective of tribe, they are divided into three classes, termed respectively, Chit-sa, Nate-sa, and Tanges-at-sa, faintly representing the aristocracy, the middle classes, and the poorer orders of civilized nations, the former being the most wealthy and the latter the poorest.' _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 418.

[227] On Peel River 'they bury their dead on stages.' On the Yukon they burn and suspend the ashes in bags from the top of a painted pole. _Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, p. 419. They of the Yukon 'do not inter the dead, but put them in oblong boxes, raised on posts.' _Whymper's Alaska_, pp. 207, 211.