FOOTNOTES:

FOOTNOTES:[60]It was about this date that Long, an Indian trader, described rum as theunum necessariumfor traffic with the savages. It is still eagerly asked for, though its sale or gift is illegal.[61]For sale, of course, to the Indians.[62]ChieflyFragaria chilensis.

[60]It was about this date that Long, an Indian trader, described rum as theunum necessariumfor traffic with the savages. It is still eagerly asked for, though its sale or gift is illegal.

[61]For sale, of course, to the Indians.

[62]ChieflyFragaria chilensis.

DESCRIPTION OF NOOTKA SOUND—MANNER OF BUILDING HOUSES—FURNITURE—DRESSES

The village of Nootka is situated in between 49 and 50 deg. N. lat.,[63]at the bottom of Friendly Cove, on the west or north-west side. It consists of about twenty houses or huts, on a small hill, which rises with a gentle ascent from the shore. Friendly Cove, which affords good and secure anchorage for ships close in with the shore, is a small harbour of not more than a quarter or half a mile in length, and about half a mile or three-quarters broad, formed by the line of coast on the east and a long point or headland, which extends as much as three leagues into the Sound, in nearly a westerly direction.[64]This, as well as I can judge from what I have seen of it, is in general from one to two miles in breadth, and mostly a rocky and unproductive soil, with but few trees. The eastern and western shores of this harbour are steep and in many parts rocky, the trees growing quite to the water's edge, but the bottom to the north and north-west is a fine sandy beach of half a mile or more in extent.

From the village to the north and north-east extends a plain, the soil of which is very excellent, and with proper cultivation may be made to produce almost any of our European vegetables; this is but little more than half a mile in breadth, and is terminated by the seacoast, which in this place is lined with rocks and reefs, and cannot be approached by ships. The coast in the neighbourhood of Nootka is in general low, and but little broken into hills and valleys. The soil is good, well covered with fine forests of pine, spruce, beech, and other trees, and abounds with streams of the finest water, the general appearance being the same for many miles around.

The village is situated on the ground occupied by the Spaniards, when they kept a garrison here; the foundations of the church and the governor's house are yet visible, and a few European plants are still to be found, which continue to be self-propagated, such as onions, peas, and turnips, but the two last are quite small, particularly the turnips, which afforded us nothing but the tops for eating. Their former village stood on the same spot, but the Spaniards, finding it a commodious situation, demolished the houses, and forced the inhabitants to retire five or six miles into the country.[65]With great sorrow, as Maquina told me, did they find themselves compelled to quit their ancient place of residence, but with equal joy did they repossess themselves of it when the Spanish garrison was expelled by the English.

HABITATIONS IN NOOTKA SOUND.HABITATIONS IN NOOTKA SOUND.

Thehouses, as I have observed, are above twenty in number, built nearly in a line. These are of different sizes, according to the rank or quality of theTyee, or chief, who lives in them, each having one, of which he is considered as the lord. They vary not much in width, being usually from thirty-six to forty feet wide, but are of very different lengths, that of the king, which is much the longest, being about one hundred and fifty feet, while the smallest, which contain only two families, do not exceed forty feet in length; the house of the king is also distinguished from the others by being higher.

Their method of building is as follows: they erect in the ground two very large posts, at such a distance apart as is intended for the length of the house. On these, which are of equal height, and hollowed out at the upper end, they lay a large spar for the ridge-pole of the building,or, if the length of the house requires it, two or more, supporting their ends by similar upright posts; these spars are sometimes of an almost incredible size, having myself measured one in Maquina's house, which I found to be one hundred feet long and eight feet four inches in circumference. At equal distances from these two posts, two others are placed on each side, to form the width of the building; these are rather shorter than the first, and on them are laid in like manner spars, but of a smaller size, having the upper part hewed flat, with a narrow ridge on the outer side to support the ends of the planks.

The roof is formed of pine planks with a broad feather edge, so as to lap well over each other, which are laid lengthwise from the ridge-pole in the centre, to the beams at the sides, after which the top is covered with planks of eight feet broad, which form a kind of coving projecting so far over the ends of the planks that form the roof, as completely to exclude the rain. On these they lay large stones to prevent their being displaced by the wind. The ends of the planks are not secured to the beams on which they are laid by any fastening, so that in a high storm I have often known all the men obliged to turn out and go upon the roof to prevent them from being blown off, carrying large stones and pieces of rock with them to secure the boards, always stripping themselves naked on these occasions, whatever may be the severity of the weather, to prevent their garments from being wet and muddied, as these storms are almost always accompanied with heavy rains. The sides of their houses are much more open and exposed to the weather; this proceeds from their not being soeasily made close as the roof, being built with planks of about ten feet long and four or five wide, which they place between stancheons or small posts of the height of the roof; of these there are four to each range of boards, two at each end, and so near each other as to leave space enough for admitting a plank. The planks or boards which they make use of for building their houses, and for other uses, they procure of different lengths as occasion requires, by splitting them out with hard wooden wedges from pine logs, and afterwards dubbing them down with their chisels, with much patience, to the thickness wanted, rendering them quite smooth.

There is but one entrance; this is placed usually at the end, though sometimes in the middle, as was that of Maquina's. Through the middle of the building, from one end to the other, runs a passage of about eight or nine feet broad, on each side of which the several families that occupy it live, each having its particular fireplace, but without any kind of wall or separation to mark their respective limits; the chief having his apartment at the upper end, and the next in rank opposite on the other side. They have no other floor than the ground; the fireplace or hearth consists of a number of stones loosely put together, but they are wholly without a chimney, nor is there any opening left in the roof, but whenever a fire is made, the plank immediately over it is thrust aside, by means of a pole, to give vent to the smoke.

The height of the houses in general, from the ground to the centre of the roof, does not exceed ten feet, that of Maquina's was not far from fourteen; the spar formingthe ridge-pole of the latter was painted in red and black circles alternately, by way of ornament, and the large posts that supported it had their tops curiously wrought or carved, so as to represent human heads of a monstrous size, which were painted in their manner. These were not, however, considered as objects of adoration, but merely as ornaments.[66]

The furniture of these people is very simple, and consists only of boxes, in which they put their clothes, furs, and such things as they hold most valuable; tubs for keeping their provisions of spawn and blubber in; trays from which they eat; baskets for their dried fish and other purposes, and bags made of bark matting, of which they also make their beds, spreading a piece of it upon the ground when they lie down, and using no other bed covering than their garments. The boxes are of pine, with a top that shuts over, and instead of nails or pegs, are fastened with flexible twigs; they are extremely smooth and high polished, and sometimes ornamented with rows of very small white shells. The tubs are of a square form, secured in the like manner, and of various sizes, some being extremely large, having seen them that were six feet long by four broad and five deep. The trays are hollowed out with their chisels from a solid block of wood, and the baskets and mats are made from the bark of trees.

From bark they likewise make the cloth for their garments, in the following manner:—A quantity of this bark is taken and put into fresh water, where it is kept for a fortnight, to give it time to completely soften; it is then taken out and beaten upon a plank, with an instrument made of bone, or some very hard wood, having grooves or hollows on one side of it, care being taken to keep the mass constantly moistened with water, in order to separate, with more ease, the hard and woody from the soft and fibrous parts, which, when completed, they parcel out into skeins, like thread. These they lay in the air to bleach, and afterwards dye them black or red, as suits their fancies, their natural colour being a pale yellow. In order to form the cloth, the women, by whom the whole of this process is performed, take a certain number of these skeins and twist them together, by rolling them with their hands upon their knees into hard rolls, which are afterwards connected by means of a strong thread, made for the purpose.

INTERIOR OF A HABITATION IN NOOTKA SOUND.INTERIOR OF A HABITATION IN NOOTKA SOUND.

Theirdress usually consists of but a single garment, which is a loose cloak or mantle (calledkutsack) in one piece, reaching nearly to the feet. This is tied loosely over the right or left shoulder, so as to leave the arms at full liberty.

Those of the common people are painted red with ochre the better to keep out the rain, but the chiefs wear them of their native colour, which is a pale yellow, ornamenting them with borders of the sea-otter skin, a kind of grey cloth made of the hair of some animal[67]which they procure from the tribes to the south, or their own cloth wrought or painted with various figures in red or black, representing men's heads, the sun and moon, fish and animals, which are frequently executedwith much skill. They have also a girdle of the same kind for securing this mantle orkutsackaround them, which is in general still more highly ornamented, and serves them to wear their daggers and knives in. In winter, however, they sometimes make use of an additional garment, which is a kind of hood, with a hole in it for the purpose of admitting the head, and falls over the breast and back, as low as the shoulders; this is bordered both at top and bottom with fur, and is never worn except when they go out.

The garments of the women vary not essentially from those of the men, the mantle having holes in it for the purpose of admitting the arms, and being tied close under the chin instead of over the shoulder. The chiefs have also mantles of the sea-otter skin, but these are only put on upon extraordinary occasions; and one that is made from the skin of a certain large animal, which is brought from the south by the Wickanninish[68]and Kla-iz-zarts.[69]This they prepare by dressing it in warm water, scraping off the hair and what flesh adheres to it carefully with sharp mussel-shells, and spreading it out in the sun to dry on a wooden frame, so as to preserve the shape. When dressed in this manner it becomes perfectly white, and as pliable as the best deer's leather, but almost as thick again. They then paint it in different figures with such paints as they usually employ in decorating their persons; these figures mostly represent human heads, canoes employed in catching whales, etc.

This skin is called metamelth, and is probably gotfrom an animal of the moose kind; it is highly prized by these people, is their great war dress, and only worn when they wish to make the best possible display of themselves. Strips or bands of it, painted as above, are also sometimes used by them for girdles or the bordering of their cloaks, and also for bracelets and ankle ornaments by some of the inferior class.

On their heads, when they go out upon any excursion, particularly whaling or fishing, they wear a kind of cap or bonnet in form not unlike a large sugar loaf with the top cut off. This is made of the same materials with their cloth,[70]but is in general of a closer texture, and by way of tassel has a long strip of the skin of the metamelth[71]attached to it, covered with rows of small white shells or beads. Those worn by the common people are painted entirely red, the chiefs having theirs of different colours. The one worn by the king, and which serves to designate him from all the others, is longer and broader at the bottom; the top, instead of being flat, having upon it an ornament in the figure of a small urn. It is also of a much finer texture than the others, and plaited or wrought in black and white stripes, with the representation in front of a canoe in pursuit of a whale, with the harpooner standing in the prow prepared to strike. This bonnet is calledSeeya-poks.

Their mode of living is very simple—their food consisting almost wholly of fish, or fish spawn fresh or dried, the blubber of the whale, seal, or sea-cow, mussels, clams, and berries of various kinds; all of which are eaten with a profusion of train-oil for sauce, not excepting even the most delicate fruit, as strawberries and raspberries.

With so little variety in their food, no great secret can be expected in their cookery. Of this, indeed, they may be said to know but two methods, viz. by boiling and steaming, and even the latter is not very frequently practised by them. Their mode of boiling is as follows:—Into one of their tubs they pour water sufficient to cook the quantity of provision wanted. A number of heated stones are then put in to make it boil, when the salmon or other fish are put in without any other preparation than sometimes cutting off the heads, tails, and fins, the boiling in the meantime being kept up by the application of the hot stones, after which it is left to cook until the whole is nearly reduced to one mass. It is then taken out and distributed in the trays. In a similar manner they cook their blubber and spawn, smoked or dried fish, and, in fine, almost everything they eat, nothing going down with them like broth.

When they cook their fish by steam, which are usually the heads, tails, and fins of the salmon, cod, and halibut, a large fire is kindled, upon which they place a bed of stones, which, when the wood is burnt down, becomes perfectly heated. Layers of green leaves or pine boughs are then placed upon the stones, and thefish, clams, etc., being laid upon them, water is poured over them, and the whole closely covered with mats to keep in the steam. This is much the best mode of cooking, and clams and mussels done in this manner are really excellent.[72]These, as I have said, may be considered as their only kinds of cookery; though I have, in a very few instances, known them dress the roe or spawn of the salmon and the herring, when first taken, in a different manner; this was by roasting them, the former being supported between two split pieces of pine, and the other having a sharp stick run through it, with one end fixed in the ground; sprats are also roasted by them in this way, a number being spitted upon one stick; and this kind of food, with a little salt, would be found no contemptible eating even to an European.

At their meals they seat themselves upon the ground, with their feet curled up under them, around their trays, which are generally about three feet long by one broad, and from six to eight inches deep. In eating they make use of nothing but their fingers, except for the soup or oil, which they lade out with clam-shells.

Around one of these trays from four to six persons will seat themselves, constantly dipping in their fingers or clam-shells one after the other. The king and chiefs alone have separate trays, from which no one is permitted to eat with them except the queen, or principal wife of the chief; and whenever the king or one of thechiefs wishes to distinguish any of his people with a special mark of favour on these occasions, he calls him and gives him some of the choice bits from his tray. The slaves eat at the same time, and of the same provisions, faring in this respect as well as their masters, being seated with the family, and only feeding from separate trays.

Whenever a feast is given by the king or any of the chiefs, there is a person who acts as a master of ceremonies, and whose business it is to receive the guests as they enter the house, and point out to them their respective seats, which is regulated with great punctiliousness as regards rank; the king occupying the highest or the seat of honour, his son or brother sitting next him, and so on with the chiefs according to their quality; the private persons belonging to the same family being always placed together, to prevent any confusion. The women are seldom invited to their feasts, and only at those times when a general invitation is given to the village.[73]

As, whenever they cook, they always calculate to have an abundance for all the guests, a profusion in this respect being considered as the highest luxury, much more is usually set before them than they can eat. That which is left in the king's tray, he sends to his house for his family by one of his slaves, as do the chiefs theirs; while those who eat from the same tray, and who generally belong to the same family, take it home as common stock, or each one receives his portion, which is distributed on the spot. This custom appearedvery singular to my companion and myself, and it was a most awkward thing for us, at first, to have to lug home with us, in our hands or arms, the blubber of fish that we received at these times, but we soon became reconciled to it, and were very glad of an opportunity to do it.

NOOTKA SOUND INDIANS.NOOTKA SOUND INDIANS.

FOOTNOTES:[63]The exact position of the village is lat. 49° 35' 31" N.; long. 126° 37' 32" W.[64]According to the Admiralty Sailing Directions, the Cove is about two cables in extent, and sheltered from the sea by a small rocky high-water island on its east side. It affords anchorage in the middle for only one vessel of moderate size, though several small vessels might find shelter. When Vancouver visited it in 1792, no less than eight ships were in it, most of them small, and secured to the shore by hawsers.[65]This means farther up the Sound; for there are villages in the interior of Vancouver Island. The Admiralty Sailing Directions declare that not a trace of the Spanish settlement now exists. This is scarcely correct, for an indistinct ridge shows the site of houses, and here and there a few bricks half hidden in the ground may be detected. I have seen a cannon ball and a Mexican dollar found there. Many of the Nootka Indians have large moustaches and whiskers, which may possibly be due to their Spanish blood, and others were decidedly Chinese-looking, a fact which may be traced to the presence of Meares's Chinese carpenters in 1778-79. Some of them can, or could, thirty years ago, by tradition, count ten in Spanish; and there is a legend in the Sound to the effect that the white men had begun to cultivate the ground, and to erect a stockade and fort; when one day a ship came with papers for the head man, who was observed to cry, and all the foreigners became sad. The next day they began moving their goods to the ship. But, as Mr. Sproat suggests, this might have reference to Meares's settlement.[66]This is a good description of the house of Maquina's grandson, as I saw it fifty-eight years after Jewitt's time.[67]Dog's hair. A tribe on Fraser River used to keep flocks of these curs, which they periodically clipped like sheep.[68]Probably the Klayoquahts (see p. 77).[69]Klahosahts.[70]The outside is made of cedar bark, the inside of white-hair bark.[71]I have more than once discussed the identity of this animal with Indian traders. None of them recognised it, nor, indeed, were acquainted with the animal by the name Jewitt applies to it. It is, however, not unlikely the North-Western marmot (Arctomys pruinosus), specimens of which are now and then—though, it must be admitted, rarely—seen in Vancouver Island; but it is more common farther south. The Alberni Indians (Seshahts and Opechesahts) used to talk of a beast calledSit-si-tehl, which we took to be the marmot, and Mr. Sproat saw one; I was not so fortunate.[72]In the opinion of the judicious Jewitt, every one who has eaten food—especially salmon and shell-fish—cooked after this fashion will coincide.Experto crede.[73]Or to one or more of the neighbouring tribes, such feasts being known asWawkoahs.

[63]The exact position of the village is lat. 49° 35' 31" N.; long. 126° 37' 32" W.

[64]According to the Admiralty Sailing Directions, the Cove is about two cables in extent, and sheltered from the sea by a small rocky high-water island on its east side. It affords anchorage in the middle for only one vessel of moderate size, though several small vessels might find shelter. When Vancouver visited it in 1792, no less than eight ships were in it, most of them small, and secured to the shore by hawsers.

[65]This means farther up the Sound; for there are villages in the interior of Vancouver Island. The Admiralty Sailing Directions declare that not a trace of the Spanish settlement now exists. This is scarcely correct, for an indistinct ridge shows the site of houses, and here and there a few bricks half hidden in the ground may be detected. I have seen a cannon ball and a Mexican dollar found there. Many of the Nootka Indians have large moustaches and whiskers, which may possibly be due to their Spanish blood, and others were decidedly Chinese-looking, a fact which may be traced to the presence of Meares's Chinese carpenters in 1778-79. Some of them can, or could, thirty years ago, by tradition, count ten in Spanish; and there is a legend in the Sound to the effect that the white men had begun to cultivate the ground, and to erect a stockade and fort; when one day a ship came with papers for the head man, who was observed to cry, and all the foreigners became sad. The next day they began moving their goods to the ship. But, as Mr. Sproat suggests, this might have reference to Meares's settlement.

[66]This is a good description of the house of Maquina's grandson, as I saw it fifty-eight years after Jewitt's time.

[67]Dog's hair. A tribe on Fraser River used to keep flocks of these curs, which they periodically clipped like sheep.

[68]Probably the Klayoquahts (see p. 77).

[69]Klahosahts.

[70]The outside is made of cedar bark, the inside of white-hair bark.

[71]I have more than once discussed the identity of this animal with Indian traders. None of them recognised it, nor, indeed, were acquainted with the animal by the name Jewitt applies to it. It is, however, not unlikely the North-Western marmot (Arctomys pruinosus), specimens of which are now and then—though, it must be admitted, rarely—seen in Vancouver Island; but it is more common farther south. The Alberni Indians (Seshahts and Opechesahts) used to talk of a beast calledSit-si-tehl, which we took to be the marmot, and Mr. Sproat saw one; I was not so fortunate.

[72]In the opinion of the judicious Jewitt, every one who has eaten food—especially salmon and shell-fish—cooked after this fashion will coincide.Experto crede.

[73]Or to one or more of the neighbouring tribes, such feasts being known asWawkoahs.

APPEARANCE OF THE NATIVES—ORNAMENTS—OTTER-HUNTING—FISHING—CANOES

In point of personal appearance the people of Nootka are among the best-looking of any of the tribes that I have seen. The men are in general from about five feet six to five feet eight inches in height; remarkably straight, of a good form, robust and strong, with their limbs in general well turned and proportioned, excepting the legs and feet, which are clumsy and ill formed, owing, no doubt, to their practice of sitting on them, though I have seen instances in which they were very well shaped; this defect is more particularly apparent in the women, who are for the most part of the time within doors, and constantly sitting while employed in their cooking and other occupations.[74]The only instance of deformity that I saw amongst them was a man of dwarfish stature; he was thirty years old, and but three feet three inches high; he had, however, no other defect than his diminutive size, being well made, and as strong and able to bear fatigue as what they were in general.[75]

Their complexion, when freed from the paint and oil with which their skins are generally covered, is a brown, somewhat inclining to a copper cast. The shape of the face is oval; the features are tolerably regular, the lips being thin and the teeth very white and even; their eyes are black but rather small, and the nose pretty well formed, being neither flat nor very prominent; their hair is black, long, and coarse, but they have no beard, completely extirpating it, as well as the hair from their bodies, Maquina being the only exception, who suffered his beard to grow on his upper lip in the manner of mustachios, which was considered as a mark of dignity.

As to the women, they are much whiter, many of them not being darker than those in some of the southern parts of Europe. They are in general very well-looking, and some quite handsome. Maquina's favourite wife in particular, who was a Wickinninish princess, would be considered as a beautiful woman inany country. She was uncommonly well formed, tall, and of a majestic appearance; her skin remarkably fair for one of these people, with considerable colour, her features handsome, and her eyes black, soft, and languishing; her hair was very long, thick, and black, as is that of the females in general, which is much softer than that of the men; in this they take much pride, frequently oiling and plaiting it carefully into two broad plaits, tying the ends with a strip of the cloth of the country, and letting it hang down before on each side of the face.

The women keep their garments much neater and cleaner than the men, and are extremely modest in their deportment and dress; their mantle, orkutsack, which is longer than that of the men, reaching quite to their feet and completely enveloping them, being tied close under the chin, and bound with a girdle of the same cloth or of sea-otter skin around their waists; it has also loose sleeves, which reach to the elbows. Though fond of ornamenting their persons, they are by no means so partial to paint as the men, merely colouring their eyebrows black and drawing a bright red stripe from each corner of the mouth towards the ear. Their ornaments consist chiefly of ear-rings, necklaces, bracelets, rings for the fingers and ankles, and small nose-jewels (the latter are, however, wholly confined to the wives of the king or chiefs); these are principally made out of copper or brass, highly polished and of various forms and sizes; the nose-jewel is usually a small white shell[76]or bead suspended to a thread.

The wives of the common people frequently wear for bracelets and ankle rings strips of the country cloth or skin of the metamelth painted in figures, and those of the king or principal chiefs, bracelets and necklaces consisting of a number of strings ofIfe-waw, an article much prized by them, and which makes a very handsome appearance. ThisIfe-waw, as they term it, is a kind of shell of a dazzling whiteness and as smooth as ivory; it is of a cylindrical form, in a slight degree curved, about the size of a goose quill, hollow, three inches in length and gradually tapering to a point, which is broken off by the natives as it is taken from the water; this they afterwards string upon threads of bark and sell it by the fathom; it forms a kind of circulating medium among these nations, five fathoms being considered as the price of a slave, their most valuable species of property. It is principally obtained from the Aitizzarts, a people living about thirty or forty miles to the northward, who collect it from the reefs and sunken rocks with which their coast abounds, though it is also brought in considerable quantity from the south.[77]

Their mode of taking it has been thus described to me:—To one end of a pole is fastened a piece of plank, in which a considerable number of pine pegs are inserted, made sharp at the ends; above the plank, in order to sink it, a stone or some weight is tied, and the other end of the pole suspended to a long rope; this is let down perpendicularly by theIfe-wawfishers in those places where that substance is found, which are usually from fifty to sixty fathoms deep. On finding the bottom, they raise the pole up a few feet and let it fall; this they repeat a number of times, as if sounding, when they draw it up and take off theIfe-wawwhich is found adhering to the points. This method of procuring it is very laborious and fatiguing, especially as they seldom take more than two or three of these shells at a time, and frequently none.

Though the women, as I have said, make but little use of paint, the very reverse is the case with the men. In decorating their heads and faces they place their principal pride, and none of our most fashionable beaus when preparing for a grand ball can be more particular; for I have known Maquina, after having been employed more than an hour in painting his face, rub the whole off, and recommence the operation anew, when it did not entirely please him.

The manner in which they paint themselves frequently varies, according to the occasion, but it oftener is the mere dictate of whim. The most usual method is to paint the eyebrows black in form of a half-moon and the face red in small squares, with the arms and legs and part of the body red; sometimes one half of the face is painted red in squares and the other black;at others dotted with spots of red and black instead of squares, with a variety of other devices, such as painting one half of the face and body red and the other black.

But a method of painting which they sometimes employed, and which they were much more particular in, was by laying on the face a quantity of bear's grease of about one-eighth of an inch thick; this they raised up into ridges resembling a small bead in joiner's work with a stick prepared for the purpose, and then painted them red, which gave the face a very singular appearance.

On extraordinary occasions the king and principal chiefs used to strew over their faces, after painting, a fine black shining powder procured from some mineral, as Maquina told me it was got from the rocks. This they callpelpelth,[78]and value it highly, as, in their opinion, it serves to set off their looks to great advantage, glittering especially in the sun like silver. This article is brought them in bags by theNewchemass,[79]a very savage nation who live a long way to the north, from whom they likewise receive a superior kind of red paint, a species of very fine and rich ochre, which they hold in much estimation.

Notwithstanding this custom of painting themselves, they make it an invariable practice, both in summer and winter, to bathe once a day, and sometimes oftener; but as the paint is put on with oil, it is not much discomposed thereby, and whenever they wish to wash it off, they repair to some piece of fresh water and scour themselves with sand or rushes.

In dressing their heads on occasion of a festival or a visit, they are full as particular and almost as long as in painting. The hair, after being well oiled, is carefully gathered upon the top of the head and secured by a piece of pine or spruce bough with the green leaves upon it. After having it properly fixed in this manner, the king and principal chiefs used to strew all over it the white down obtained from a species of large brown eagle which abounds on this coast, and which they are very particular in arranging so as not to have a single feather out of place, occasionally wetting the hair to make it adhere. This, together with the bough, which is sometimes of considerable size and stuck over with feathers by means of turpentine, gives them a very singular and grotesque appearance, which they, however, think very becoming, and the first thing they do, on learning the arrival of strangers, is to go and decorate themselves in this manner.

The men also wear bracelets of painted leather or copper and large ear-rings of the latter, but the ornament on which they appear to set the most value is the nose-jewel, if such an appellation may be given to the wooden stick which some of them employ for this purpose. The king and chiefs, however, wear them of a different form, being either small pieces of polished copper or brass, ofwhich I made many for them in the shape of hearts and diamonds, or a twisted conical shell about half an inch in length, of a bluish colour and very bright, which is brought from the south. These are suspended by a small wire or string to the hole in the gristle of the nose, which is formed in infancy by boring it with a pin, the hole being afterwards enlarged by the repeated insertion of wooden pegs of an increased size, until it becomes about the diameter of a pipe-stem, though some have them of a size nearly sufficient to admit the little finger.

The common class, who cannot readily procure the more expensive jewels that I have mentioned, substitute for them, usually, a smooth, round stick, some of which are of an almost incredible length, for I have seen them projecting not less than eight or nine inches beyond the face on each side; this is made fast or secured in its place by little wedges on each side of it. These "sprit-sail-yard fellows," as my messmate used to call them, when rigged out in this manner, made quite a strange show, and it was his delight, whenever he saw one of them coming towards us with an air of consequence proportioned to the length of his stick, to put up his hand suddenly as he was passing him, so as to strike the stick, in order, as he said, to brace him up sharp to the wind; this used to make them very angry, but nothing was more remote from Thompson's ideas than a wish to cultivate their favour.

The natives of Nootka appear to have but little inclination for the chase, though some of them were expert marksmen, and used sometimes to shoot ducks and geese; but the seal and the sea-otter form theprincipal objects of their hunting, particularly the latter.

Of this animal, so much noted for its valuable skin, the following description may not be uninteresting:—The sea-otter[80]is nearly five feet in length, exclusive of the tail, which is about twelve inches, and is very thick and broad where it joins the body, but gradually tapers to the end, which is tipped with white. The colour of the rest is a shining, silky black, with the exception of a broad white stripe on the top of the head. Nothing can be more beautiful than one of these animals when seen swimming, especially when on the look-out for any object. At such times it raises its head quite above the surface, and the contrast between the shining black and the white, together with its sharp ears and a long tuft of hair rising from the middle of its forehead, which looks like three small horns, render it quite a novel and attractive object. They are in general very tame, and will permit a canoe or boat to approach very near before they dive. I was told, however, that they are become much more shy since they have been accustomed to shoot them with muskets, than when they used only arrows.[81]

The skin is held in great estimation in China, more especially that of the tail, the fur of which is finer and closer set than that on the body. This is always cut off and sold separately by the natives. The value of a skin is determined by its size, that being consideredas a prime skin which will reach, in length, from a man's chin to his feet. The food of the sea-otter is fish, which he is very dexterous in taking, being an excellent swimmer, with feet webbed like those of a goose. They appear to be wholly confined to the seacoast, at least to the salt water. They have usually three or four young at a time, but I know not how often they breed, nor in what place they deposit their young, though I have frequently seen them swimming around the mother when no larger than rats. The flesh is eaten by the natives, cooked in their usual mode by boiling, and is far preferable to that of the seal, of which they make much account.

But if not great hunters, there are few people more expert in fishing. Their lines are generally, made from the sinew of the whale, and are extremely strong. For the hook, they usually make use of a straight piece of hard wood, in the lower part of which is inserted, and well secured with thread or whale sinew, a bit of bone made very sharp at the point and bearded; but I used to make for them hooks from iron, which they preferred, not only as being less liable to break, but more certain of securing the fish. Cod, halibut, and other sea fish were not only caught by them with hooks, but even salmon.

To take this latter fish, they practise the following method:—One person seats himself in a small canoe, and, baiting his hook with a sprat, which they are always careful to procure as fresh as possible, fastens his line to the handle of the paddle; this, as he plies it in the water, keeps the fish in constant motion, so as to give it the appearance of life, which the salmon seeing, leapsat it and is instantly hooked, and, by a sudden and dexterous motion of the paddle, drawn on board. I have known some of the natives take no less than eight or ten salmon of a morning, in this manner, and have seen from twenty to thirty canoes at a time in Friendly Cove thus employed.

They are likewise little less skilful in taking the whale. This they kill with a kind of javelin or harpoon thus constructed and fitted: the barbs are formed of bone, which are sharpened on the outer side, and hollowed within, for the purpose of forming a socket for the staff; these are then secured firmly together with a whale sinew, the point being fitted so as to receive a piece of mussel-shell, which is ground to a very sharp edge, and secured in its place by means of turpentine.[82]To this head or prong is fastened a strong line of whale sinew about nine feet in length, to the end of which is tied a bark rope from fifty to sixty fathoms long, having from twenty to thirty sealskin floats or buoys attached to it at certain intervals, in order to check the motion of the whale and obstruct his diving. In the socket of the harpoon a staff or pole of about ten feet long, gradually tapering from the middle to each end, is placed; this the harpooner holds in his hand, in order to strike the whale, and immediately detaches it as soon as the fish is struck.

The whale is considered as the king's fish, and no other person, when he is present, is permitted to touch him until the royal harpoon has first drawn his blood, however near he may approach; and it would be considered almost a sacrilege for any of the common people to strike a whale before he is killed, particularly if any of the chiefs should be present.[83]They also kill the porpoise[84]and sea-cow[85]with harpoons, but this inferior game is not interdicted the lower class.

With regard to their canoes, some of the handsomestto be found on the whole coast are made at Nootka, though very fine ones are brought by the Wickinninish and the Kla-iz-zarts, who have them more highly ornamented. They are of all sizes, from such as are capable of holding only one person to their largest war canoes, which will carry forty men, and are extremely light. Of these, the largest of any that I ever saw was one belonging to Maquina, which I measured, and found to be forty-two feet six inches in length at the bottom, and forty-six feet from stem to stern. These are made of pine,[86]hollowed out from a tree with their chisels solely, which are about three inches broad and six in length, and set into a handle of very hard wood.

This instrument was formerly made of flint, or some hard stone ground down to as sharp an edge as possible, but since they have learned the use of iron, they have almost all of them of that metal. Instead of a mallet for striking this chisel, they make use of a smooth round stone, which they hold in the palm of the hand. With this same awkward instrument they not only excavate their canoes and trays and smooth their planks, but cut down such trees as they want, either for building, fuel, or other purposes, a labour which is mostly done by their slaves.

The felling of trees, as practised by them, is a slow and most tedious process, three of them being generally from two to three days in cutting down a large one; yet so attached were they to their own method, that notwithstanding they saw Thompson frequently, with one of our axes, of which there was a number saved, fell a tree in less time than they could have gone round it with their chisels, still they could not be persuaded to make use of them.

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