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IH7S. in tho little schooner Waiiden'r, of twenty tons bur- den, we stirred northwestward for tho Queen Charlotte Islands ; and judff ing our craft not sufliciently sea-worthy for the rough outer coast of Vancouver Island, exposed to the full sweej) of t'le great North Pacific, we were obliged to voyage by the inner channels and wonderful se- ries of connecting fiords which character- ize the coast of British Columbia, and ram- ify among its half-submerged mountain ranges. Channels like these, however well J -'"nted for steam navigation, and won- derfully picturesque and grand though they are, are tedious enough for sailing vessels. The wind blows generally either directly u]) or down the channel, shut in by its mountain walls, and whut with calms and the rapid and constantly changing tidal current, Ave spent many a weary hovu* at anchor, or even retro- Uo44o 402 HARPER'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE. gressing. Sixteen days thus oc(;ui)ie(l, however, brouglit us to Melbauk Hound, whence, abandoning the idea of visiting first the north end of the islands, we hiy across for their southern extremity. In making the traverse of eighty miles we which they possess, are sejjarated by wide water stretches from the archipelago fringing the coast of the mainland of Britisli Columbia to the north, and from the southern extremity of Alaska to llu; nortliwest. They form a compact group. KtHO IIAUUOK, VIUKK.N CIlAULOlIK 1SI.AN1)!<, were first becalmed, and then, not without some discomfort and danger, weathered half a gale from the northwestward, and on the 12th of June completed our voyage of nearly five hundred miles by casting and' or between the silent wooded shores of a cove in Stewart Channel, wliich sep- arates Prescott and Moresby islands. Along the coast of British Columbia the Indians are almost exclusively fishermen. They engage in the chase to a very limit- ed exteiit, and .seldom venture far into the dense forests, of which they appear often to entertain a superstitious dread, peopling them ill imagination with monsters and fearful inhabitants. While .some of these tribes are still little improved, or have even deteriorated from their original condition, others are modei'ately industrious, and ap- ply themselves to work in various ways. Of the tribes inhabiting the coa.st, the Haidas are in many resjjects the most in- teresting. The (^ueen Charlotte Islands, and it is perhaps to their comparative iso- lation and homogeneity that we owe the fact that the Haidas, while remarkal/ly distinct f i*om most other tribes of the coast, are in language and customs so nearly the same in all parts of their own territory. The extreme length of the Queen Char- lotte Islands is one hundred and eighty miles, with a greatest breadth of sixty miles. During Captain Cotik's last voyage in the Pacilic it was discovered that a lucra- tive trade in furs might be opened between the northwestern coast of America and China, and though the existence of a part of the Queen Charlotte Islands had been known to the Spaniards since the voyage of Juan Peraz in 1774, it is to tln^ traders who followed in the track of Cook that we owe most of the earlier discoveries on tills part of the coast, and it is they who fiist ii])|)ear to have come in contact with the Haidas. littl ;♦ /< £ e iso- \ve the calmly coast, •ly the ■itory. Char- ■ifihty sixty ago in huM-a- 'twet'ii a ami a part been voyage traders )k that >ries on cy who ,ct with THE HAIDAS. 4();j Toward the befyinning- and during tlie earlier years of the present century the C^ueen Charlotte Islands were not infre- quently visited by trading vessels. The sea-otter, however— the skins of which were the most valuable articles of trade possessed by the islanders— having become very scarce through continuous hunting, few vessels but mere coasters have called at any of tlie ports for many years back. The islands have lain, too, on one side of tne tratlic to Alaska and the northern part of British Columbia, which of late years has assumed considerable pro])ortions. The earliest notice of the Haidas which I have been able to find is that given in Captain Dixon's narrative, and bears date July, 1787. Dixon first made the land of the isl- ands near their north- >,, western extremity, in the ', vicinity of North I.sland. ;., * and gives in the narrative of his voyage a detailed ac- count of his meeting ar.d intercourse with the na- tives, and his trade witli them for furs. When first visited by whites, the population of the islands ])robably ex- ceeded 7000 : at the present day it is about 2000. includ- ing in this number many who, while now living elsewhere on the coast, still call the islands their home. The cl imate of the Queen Charlotte Islands is ex- cessively humid, and they are al most e very wl le re co v- ered with magnilicent co- niferous trees. Mountains 4000 to 5000 feet liigh ri.se in their central portit)n, and they ai'e penetrated on all sides by dark deep fiords with rocky walls. To the northeast, it is true, a wide sti-etch of low and nearly level country occurs, which may some day support a farnnng )>opulation, but at the present time its sombre Avoods, filled with dense undergrowth, and barricaded with pros- trate trunks in every stage of decay, otter little to induce either Indian or white to penetrate them. The Haidas. therefore, though cultivating hero and there along the shores small potato i)atches, are essen- tially fishermen. Few paths or trails trav- er.se the interior of the islands, and of these some formerly used when the population was greater are now abandoned. The halibut is found in great abun- dance in the vicinity of tlie islands, and it is more i)articularly on this fish that the Haidas depend. Their villages are inva- rial)ly situated along the shore, often on bleak, wave-lashed parts of the coast, but always in jjroximity to productive halibut banks. Journeys are made in canoe along the coast. The canoes are skillfully hol- lowed from the great cedar-trees of the region, which, after being worked down to a certain small thickness, are steamed .•■■•1 -- CHlliFS OF TllK IIAIUA INDIANS. and spread by the insertion of cross-pieces till they are made to assume a most grace- ful form, an(1 .-how lines which would sat- isfy the most tastidious ship-builder. In their larger canoes the Haidas do not hesi- tate to make long voyages on the open sea; and in former days, by their f' quent de- scents on the coast of the ma land, and the facility with which the retreated again to their own islands, they rendered t.iemselves more dreaded than any tribe from Vancouver to Sitka. 404 HARPER'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE. IIAIDA GIRL. In their mode of life, and the ingenuity and skill they display in their manufac- ture of canoes and other articles, the Hai- das do not differ essentially from the oth- er tribes inhabiting the northern part of tlie coast of Britisii Columbia and South- ern Alaska. In the Queen Charlotte Isl- ands, however, the peculiar style of archi- tecture and art elsewhere among the Indi- ans of the west coast more or less promi- nently exhibited, appears to attain its greatest development. Whether this may show that to the Haidas or their ancestors the introduction of this is due, or indicate merely that with the greater isolation of these people, and consequent increased measure of security, the particular ideas of the Indian mind were able to body themselves forth more fully, we may never know. The situation of the islands, and the comparative infrequency with which they have been visited for many years, have at least tended to preserve intact many features which have al- ready vanished from the customs and manufactui*es of most other tribes. As before stated, the permanent villages of the Haidas are invaria- bly situated at the sea-shore. They consist generally of a single long row of houses, with l)ut a narrow grassy border between it and tiie beach, on Avhich the canoes of the tribe (for each village constitutes a chieftaincy) are drawn up. In front of each nouse stands a symbolical carved post, wliilc other carved jiosts, situat«Hl irreguhirly, and differing somewhat in form fi'om those projjer to the houses, are genei-ally me- morials to the dead. Such a village, seen from a little distance off, the houses and posts gray with the weather, re.sem- bles a strip of half-burned forest with dead "rampikes." The little cloud of smoke from the various fires may, however, serve to indicate its true character. The general type of construction of houses with the Indians of this part of the northwest coast is everywhere nearly the same, but among the Haidas tliey are more substantially framed, and much more care is given to the litting together and ornamentation of the edifice than is elsewhere seen. The houses ai'e rectan- gular, and sometimes over forty feet in length of side. The walls are formed of planks split by means of wedges from ce- dar logs, and often of great size. The roof is composed of similar split planks or bark, and slopes down at each side, the gable end of the house — if such an expression may be allowed — facing tlie sea, toward which the door also opens. The door is usually an oval hole cut in the base of the grotesquely covered i)ost. forty or fifty feet higli. wliicli we may call the totem ])ost, but which to the Haidas is known as kcchen. Stooping to enter, one finds that the soil has been excavated in the interior of the house so as to make the actual Hoor six or eight feet lower than the surface outside. You descend to it by a few rough steps, and on looking about observe that one or two large steps run round all four sides of the house. These are faced with cedar planks of great size, which have been hewn out, and serve not onlv as shelves on which to store all CARTED WOOPKN DISK. THE HAIDAS. 405 the household goods, but as beds and seats if need be. In the centre of a square area of bare earth the fire burns, and it will be remarkable if some one of the occupants of the house be not engaged in culinary operations thereat. The smoke mounting upward passes away by what we may call a skylight — an ojjening in th(* roof, with a shutter to set against the wind, and whicli serves also as a means of lighting the inte- rior. One is surprised to find wliat large beams have been employed in framing the house. Ther< are generally f( 'ir of these laid horizontally, with stout supporting uprights at the ends. They are neatly hewn, and of a symmetrical cylindrical form, and are generally fitted into the hollowed ends of the upriglits. The up- rights are often about fifteen feet high, with a diameter of about three feet; and it is only when we become acquainted with the fact that a regular bee is held at the erection of the house that we can ac- count for the movement without macliin- ery of such large logs. The bee is accom- panied by a distribution of property on the pai't of the man for whom the house is being built, well known on the west coast by the Chimook name potlatch. Such a house as this acconunodates several fami- lies, in one sense of the term, each occupy- ing a certain corner or portion of the interior. We nmst return, however, to the carved posts, which constitute the most distinct- ive feature of a Haida, village. To make one of tliese a large and sound cedar-tree — probably three or four feet in diameter — is chosen soinewhere not far from the water's edge, felled, trimmed, and then moved down to the sea. Being launched, it is towed to the village site, and by united labor dragged up on the beach above higii-water mark. It is then shaped and carved, some of the ^v^dians being famous for their skill in this business, and earning considerable sums by prac- ticing it. Tlie log is hollowed behind, like a trough, to make it light, while the front is generally covered with a mass of grotesque figures, in which the animal representing the totem, or clan, of the person for whom it is made takes a prom- inent place. It constitutes, in fact, his coat of arms, and may in some instances be gayly painted. When all is finished the post is taken to its place, and firmly planted in the ground, to remain a thing of beauty till, under the influence of the Vou LXV.-No. 381.-20 climate, it becomes gray with age and hoary with moss and lichen. The peculiar type of art most fully dis- played on the carved posts is found more or less in all the manufactures of the Hai- das. The neat and even elegant wooden dishes which formerly served all house- hold purposes embody always some pe- culiar animal form or grouping of forms more or less complicated or contorted. Though the artist may be able to copy nature faithfully enough when he tries, as witnessed in some of the masks u.sed in dancing, he in most cases prefers to fol- low cei'tain conventional ideas which ap- pear by long usage to have become incor- porated with the native mind. Not the least curious of the customs of the Haidas, and probably with some re- ligious significance, are those connected with dancing ceremonies. These appear to be divided into six classes, which are designated by as many barbarous ii les, not necessary here to mention. Of these I have been fortunate enough to see one, the Ktcai-o-guns-o-lung, a description of which, given nearly as written down .at the time, may serve to illustrate a class of performances once common among the native peoples, but which have now al- most everywhere passed away. Landing after dark from our boat at the southern end of the fine sandy beach on which Skidegate village fronts, we found this part of the town apparently quite deserted, but could discern a dim glow of light at a distance, and distin- guish the monotonous sound of the drum. Scrambling as best we might in the dark by the patii whicli zigzags along the front of the row of houses, and narrowly es- caping falls over various obstacles, we reached the house in which the dance was going on. Pushing open the door, a glare of light flashed out, which had previously been seen only as it filtered through the various crevices of the house; and entering, we found ourselves behind and among the dancers, wiio stood within the house with their backs to the front wall. Edging through them, we crossed the open space in which the fire, well supplied with resinous logs, was burn- ing, and seated ourselves on the floor amidst a crowd of on-lookers at the fur- ther end. The house was of the usual oblong shape, the floor being covered with cedar ))lanks, with the exception of a square !| 406 IIAKPER'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE. space in the centre for the fire, and the goods and cliattels of the fuiiiily piled here and there in lieaps alony tlie walls, leaving the greater part of tlie interior clear. The audience was arranged along the sides and at the further end, filling al- most every available space, squatting iii various attitudes on the lloor. and con- sisting of men. women, and children of all ages. The smoke of the fire escaped by wide openings in the roof, witliout causing any inconvenience, and its glow brightly illuminated the faces and forms of all present. The performers, in this instance about twenty in number, were dressed according to no uniform plan, but attired in their best clothes, or at least their most showy ones, with the addition of certain ornaments and badges ajjpro- priate to the occasion. All, or nearly all, wore head-dres.ses, variously constructed of twisted cedar bark, and ornamented with feathers, or, as in one case, with a bris- tling circle of the whiskers of the sea- lion. Shoulder girdles made of cedar bark, colored, or ornamented with tas- sels, were very common. One man wore leggings covered with fringes of puffin beaks strung together, which rattled as he Moved. Many, if not all, held sprigs of fresh spruce in the hand, and were cover- ed about the head with downy feathers, which also floated in abundance in the wai . air of the house. Some had rat- tles, and added to the din by shaking these furiously at the accentuated parts of the song. Five women took part in the dance, standing in front in a row, and were dressed with some uniformity, sev- eral having the peculiarly valuable cedar- bai'k or goat's-wool shawls made by the Tshirasiens. The head-dresses of the wo- men were all alike, consisting in each case of a small ma.sk or semblance of a face carved neatly in wood, and inlaid with pearly haliotis shell. These, attached to a cedar -bark frame, and trimmed with gay feathers and tassels, stood before the forehead, while at the back in some cases depended a train with ermine skins. The faces of both men and women en- gaged in the dance were ga> ly painted, vermilion being the favorite color. The performer on the' drum — a flat tamboui'ine-like article formed of hide stretched on a hoop — sat opposite the dan- cers and near the fire, so that they could see each other's movements. The drum was bcateji very regularly with double knocks — thus, tiim turn, turn turn, turn tnvi — and with the sound the dancers kept time in a sort of chant or song, to which words are set, and which swells into a full chorus or dies away, accord- ing to the notions of a leader who stood among the dancers, who, besides marking time, now and then gave a few words of direction or exhortation. To the drumming and singing the dan- cing also keeps time, following it very closely. At every beat a spasmodic twitch passes through the crowd of dancers, who scarcely lift their feet from the floor, but move by double jerks, shuffling the feet a little at the same time. After the per- formance has continued for ten minutes or so the master of the ceremonies gives a sign, and all suddenly stop, with a loud Inigh ! The dance is resumed by the per- spiring crowd at tlie signal of the drum, which strikes up after a few moments" rest has been allowed. The crowd of gayly painted, gayly dressed savages, by the kind light of the fire, presented, on the whole, a rather brave and imposing appearance, and when excited in the dance the Haida may yet almost imagine the grand old days to re- main when hundreds crowded the villages now occupied by tens, and nothing had eclipsed the grandeur of their ceremonies unu doings. Of stories connected with localities, or accounting for various circumstances, there are no doubt very many among the Haidas. Of these a few have been col- lected. The fundamental narrative of the origin of man and the beginning of the present state of atFairs is the most im- portant of their myths. Very long ago, they say, there was a great flood, by which all men and animals v.'ere destroyed, with the exception of a single raven. This creature was not, however, exactly an ordinary bird, but — as with all animals in the old Indian sto- ries — possessed the attributes of n human being to a great extent. His coat of fea- thers, for instance, could be put on or tak- en off at will like a garment. The name of this being was Ne-kil-stlas. When the flood had gone down, Ne- kil-stlas looked about, but could And neither companions nor a mate, and be- came very lonely. At last he took a cockle-shell from the beach, and marry- ing it, he still continued to brood and THE HAIDAS. 407 double n. iuin lancors onp, to swells ucford- stood larkirtg ovds of he dan- it very c twitch ?rs, who oor, but le feet a the per- minutes ■* gives a 1 a loud the per- le drum, ents* rest d. gayly ht of the a rather lud when may yet lys to re- e villages iiing had irenionies alities. or instances, niong the been col- tive of the iig of the most im- ere was a id animals ition of a was not, )ird. but— udian sto- ■ a human oat of fea- on or tak- The name down, Ne- jould iind te, and be- ho took a ud marry- brood and think earnestly of his wish for a compan- ion, liy-and-by in the shell he heard a very faint cry like that of a newly born child, but which gradually became louder, till at last a little female child was seen, which, growing by degrees larger and lar- ger, was finally married by the raven, and from this union all tlie Indians were pro- duced, and the country ])eopled. The people, however, had many wants, and as yet had neither fire, light, fresh- water, or the oolachen Hsh. riiese things were all in the possession of a great chief or deity called Setlin-ki-jjish, who lived where the Nasse River now is. Water was first obtained by Ne-kil-stlas in the fol- lowing maimer. Tiie chief had a daugh- ter, and to her Ne-kil-stlas covertly made love, and visited her many times unknown to her father. The girl began to love Ne- kil-stlas very much, and trust in hiiTi, which, was what he desired ; and at length, when he thought the time ripe, he asked on one occasion for a drink of water, say- ing that he was very thirsty. The girl brought him the water in one of the close- ly woven baskets in common use for that purpose; but he drank only a little, and, setting the basket down beside him, wait- ed till the girl fell asleep. Then quickly donning his coat of feathers, and lifting the basket in his beak, he flew out of the opening made for the smoke in the top of the lodge. He was in great haste, fear- ing to be followed by the people of the chief, and a little water fell out here and there, causing the numerous rivers which are noA\ found ; but in the Haida country a few drops only fell, like rain, and so it is that there are no large streams there to-day. Ne-kil-stlas next wished to obtain fire, which was also in the possession of the same powerful being or chief. He did not dare, however, to appear again in the chief's house, nor did the chief's daugh- ter longer show Viim favor. Assuming, therefore, the form of a single needle- like leaf of the spruce-tree, he floated on the water near the house; and when the girl — his former lover — came down to draw water, was lifted by her in the vessel she used. The girl, drinking the water, swallowed without noticing it the little leaf, and shortly afterward bore a child, who was no other than the cun- ning Ne-kil-stlas, who had thus again ob- tained an entry into the lodge. Watch- ing his opportunity, he one day picked up a burning brand, and flying out as before by the snu)ke hole at the to)) of the lodge, carried it away, and spread lire every- where. Similar childish stories sei've to ex|)lain the origin of light and the prized oolachen fish. Ne-kil-stlas of the Haidas is represented in function and name by Us-1as of the Carries Tuineh. Of Us-tas an almost endless series of grotesque and often dis- gu.sting adventures are related, and analo- gous tales are repeated about Ne-kil-stlas. The collection and study of details like these concei'ning the habits, custcmis, and thoughts of a people semi-barbarous, and disa])pearing even before owv eyes in the univer.sal menstrmmi of civilization, may seem to be of little iini)ortance. They lead, howcA'er, into Oi wide and interesting region of speculation, embi'acing the ques- tion of the origin and interrelation of the American a!borigines, their wanderings, and all the unwritten pages of their his- tory, which we can hope to know even by the most careful inquiry only in dim out- lines. We are led to ask ourselves in particu- lar in I'egard to the Haidas, what has been the origin of the grotesque but highly conventionalized art which exhibits itself in mar" of the works of these people, and the social customs which, with a power almost as strong as that of fashion among ourselves, causes them to devote so much of their time to ceremonies apparently meaningless, but which serve to form the bonds and rough working machinery of society among them? Have these been those of a people who, "Flyin^-, found shelter in the fortunate isles, And left their usages, their arts and laws. To disappear bj' a slow gradual death, To dwindle and to perish, one by one. Starved in those narrow bounds"' ? or have they been developed slowly in a community separated from the human stock at a very early period ? and might they, had they never been brought face to face with a superior power, have grown in the course of ages into an independent civilization like that of Mexico or Peru? We can never hope to answer such ques- tions fully ; but in regard to these people of the northwest coast we know that there are on record several instances in which Japanese junks, driven by the prevailing winds and currents, have been carried across the whole breadth of the North Pa- 408 HARPEU'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE. ciHc, and that the posnafi^o across Behrinj? Sti'uit to th« tiortli is short, and is oven occasionally at the present day nmde on the winter ice by the Esquimaux. It is therefore more tiian ])rol)able that people with their rude arts may from time to time hav(! been borne to the western coast of America, and that it is to Eastern Asia that we nuist look for the «)rigin of its inhabitants. A REBEL. CAPTAIN MDORFIELD DRAKE, of the — th Massachusetts, came riding through the wood in a southerly direction. Through the trees on hi.s right cume the niddy glow of the Virginian sun, now near its setting. It glistened intermit- tently upon th(^ sleojt flanks of his roan mare, and touched the rider's thin smooth ciiatk and brown mustache. Handsome and gallant he looked, this tail young otH- cer; and no man in the regiment had a braver record or fairer prospects than he. His s >cial qualities were fully on a level with his warlike ones. Ho was merry and good-humored ; a teller of capital stories ; a strict disciplinarian, yet popular w^ith his men; an inexhaustible getter-up of and leader in all sorts of diversions to relieve the monotony of camp; a man whom all women were apt to like, even when their political sympathies were at variance with his; and a man who knew how to win a woman's heart gracefully, and i)erhaps with equal grace to leave it in the lurcli, V(rhen the general commanding order- ed a change of base. Such as he was, for good or evil. Captain Drake rode through the wood that April afternoon, until the trees thinned away, and a large rambling house, with a broad piazza and open whidows, appeared on a slight eleva- tion beyond. As he rode up to the door, and flung himself out of the saddle, the red rim of the sun vanished behind the western hill. A negro led away his horse, and Cap- tain Drake sj)rang up the stejjs of tiio piazza with a light foot. Before he reached the door, a slender figure dres.sed in white, with a blue sash round her wai.st, and a bow of the same color in her dark hair, made her appearance on the broad thresh- old. Moorfleld Drake took both her hands in his, and looked smilingly into her eyes. Her eyes were blue, and had a certain gravity in their depths which remained even beneath the light of pleasure that now filled them. Drake's eyes were gray and very bright, with a comnumding glance, and full of life and the enjoyment of it. "Well, Mademoiselle Mario, were you expecting me V "No — well, yes ; now that you are here, I think I did. Can you stay long ?" "Must be back by eight. I suppose you've heard the news 'i Are you glad, or sorry ?" "What news?" "You don't know { You're only half a rebel. I'll wager Miss Madge has all the particulars at her tongue's end. If I were Lee, I'd have had her in the secret service long ago. She'd make an incom- parable spy; ma! • u believe black is white; and even if she were caught, no one would ..ve the heart to execute her. How lovely you look this evening!" "But what is this news? I am not lovely ; I only — I don't believe Madge is so much of a rebel, as you call it, as I am. It's her way to say a hurulred tinuis more than she means, just for fun. And she's a hundred times lovelier than I am. But you haven't told me the news." They had entered the large low-ceiled drawing-room, and had seated themselves on a wicker-work lounge between the win- dows. Drake sat with his hands clasped over the hilt of his sword, and his chin resting upon them. "Why, the news is," he said, ' ' that your friend General Lee has suddenly taken it into his head to come in this direction ; and consequently we may receive orders to march at any mo- ment. So this may be my last call here for some time to come." Herewith he fixed his eyes upon her face, and found no cause for disappoint- ment in what he saw there. Sweet Marie Cranstoun had never been successful in dissimulation ; truth and simplicity were at the foundation of her nature. And now the dismay and tremor at her heart showed themselves only too visibly in her delicate and sensitive features, and in the unconscious clasping of her hands upon her lap. Her lips parted trenuilously, but Cviie did not speak. "Well, are you I'lad, or sorry?" re- peated Captain Drake, with the impulse of a victor who exults in his security. "How soon do you mean to forget me ?" " Forget you!" echoed she. Then she felt that tears were corning to her eyes,