The office of chief is elective, and the extent of power wielded depends

upon the ability of the ruler. In some this authority is nominal; others

become great despots.[166] Slavery was practiced to a considerable

extent; and not only all prisoners of war were slaves, but a regular

slave-trade was carried on with the south. When first known to the

Russians, according to Holmberg, most of their slaves were Flatheads

from Oregon. Slaves are not allowed to hold property or to marry, and

when old and worthless they are killed. Kotzebue says that a rich man

"purchases male and female slaves, who must labor and fish for him, and

strengthen his force when he is engaged in warfare. The slaves are

prisoners of war, and their descendants; the master's power over them is

unlimited, and he even puts them to death without scruple. When the

master dies, two slaves are murdered on his grave that he may not want

attendance in the other world; these are chosen long before the event

occurs, but meet the destiny that awaits them very philosophically."

Simpson estimates the slaves to be one third of the entire population.

Interior tribes enslave their prisoners of war, but, unlike the coast

tribes, they have no hereditary slavery, nor systematic traffic in

slaves.

[Sidenote: CASTE AND CLANSHIP.]

With the superior activity and intelligence of the Thlinkeets, social

castes begin to appear. Besides an hereditary nobility, from which class

all chiefs are chosen, the whole nation is separated into two great

divisions or clans, one of which is called the Wolf, and the other the

Raven. Upon their houses, boats, robes, shields, and wherever else they

can find a place for it, they paint or carve their crest, an heraldic

device of the beast or the bird designating the clan to which the owner

belongs. The Raven trunk is again divided into sub-clans, called the

Frog, the Goose, the Sea-Lion, the Owl, and the Salmon. The Wolf family

comprises the Bear, Eagle, Dolphin, Shark, and Alca. In this clanship

some singular social features present themselves. People are at once

thrust widely apart, and yet drawn together. Tribes of the same clan may

not war on each other, but at the same time members of the same clan may

not marry with each other. Thus the young Wolf warrior must seek his

mate among the Ravens, and, while celebrating his nuptials one day, he

may be called upon the next to fight his father-in-law over some

hereditary feud. Obviously this singular social fancy tends greatly to

keep the various tribes of the nation at peace.[167]

Although the Thlinkeet women impose upon themselves the most painful and

rigorous social laws, there are few savage nations in which the sex have

greater influence or command greater respect. Whether it be the

superiority of their intellects, their success in rendering their

hideous charms available, or the cruel penances imposed upon womanhood,

the truth is that not only old men, but old women, are respected. In

fact, a remarkably old and ugly crone is accounted almost above

nature--a sorceress. One cause of this is that they are much more modest

and chaste than their northern sisters.[168] As a rule, a man has but

one wife; more, however, being allowable. A chief of the Nass tribe is

said to have had forty.

A young girl arrived at the age of maturity is deemed unclean; and

everything she comes in contact with, or looks upon, even the clear sky

or pure water, is thereby rendered unpropitious to man. She is therefore

thrust from the society of her fellows, and confined in a dark den as a

being unfit for the sun to shine upon. There she is kept sometimes for a

whole year. Langsdorff suggests that it may be during this period of

confinement that the foundation of her influence is laid; that in modest

reserve, and meditation, her character is strengthened, and she comes

forth cleansed in mind as well as body. This infamous ordeal, coming at

a most critical period, and in connection with the baptism of the block,

cannot fail to exert a powerful influence upon her character.

It is a singular idea that they have of uncleanness. During all this

time, according to Holmberg, only the girl's mother approaches her, and

that only to place food within her reach. There she lies, wallowing in

her filth, scarcely able to move. It is almost incredible that human

beings can bring themselves so to distort nature. To this singular

custom, as well as to that of the block, female slaves do not conform.

After the girl's immurement is over, if her parents are wealthy, her

old clothing is destroyed, she is washed and dressed anew, and a grand

feast given in honor of the occasion.[169] The natural sufferings of

mothers during confinement are also aggravated by custom. At this time

they too are considered unclean, and must withdraw into the forest or

fields, away from all others, and take care of themselves and their

offspring. After the birth of a child, the mother is locked up in a shed

for ten days.

A marriage ceremony consists in the assembling of friends and

distribution of presents. A newly married pair must fast for two days

thereafter, in order to insure domestic felicity. After the expiration

of that time they are permitted to partake of a little food, when a

second two days' fast is added, after which they are allowed to come

together for the first time; but the mysteries of wedlock are not fully

unfolded to them until four weeks after marriage.

Very little is said by travelers regarding the bath-houses of the

Thlinkeets, but I do not infer that they used them less than their

neighbors. In fact, notwithstanding their filth, purgations and

purifications are commenced at an early age. As soon as an infant is

born, and before it has tasted food, whatever is in the stomach must be

squeezed out. Mothers nurse their children from one to two and a half

years. When the child is able to leave its cradle, it is bathed in the

ocean every day without regard to season, and this custom is kept up by

both sexes through life. Those that survive the first year of filth, and

the succeeding years of applied ice water and exposure, are very justly

held to be well toughened.

The Thlinkeet child is frequently given two names, one from the father's

side and one from the mother's; and when a son becomes more famous than

his father, the latter drops his own name, and is known only as the

father of his son. Their habits of life are regular. In summer, at early

dawn they put out to sea in their boats, or seek for food upon the

beach, returning before noon for their first meal. A second one is taken

just before night. The work is not unequally divided between the sexes,

and the division is based upon the economical principles of civilized

communities. The men rarely conclude a bargain without consulting their

wives.

Marchand draws a revolting picture of their treatment of infants. The

little bodies are so excoriated by fermented filth, and so scarred by

their cradle, that they carry the marks to the grave. No wonder that

when they grow up they are insensible to pain. Nor are the mothers

especially given to personal cleanliness and decorum.[170]

Music, as well as the arts, is cultivated by the Thlinkeets, and, if we

may believe Marchand, ranks with them as a social institution. "At fixed

times," he says, "evening and morning, they sing in chorus, every one

takes part in the concert, and from the pensive air which they assume

while singing, one would imagine that the song has some deep interest

for them." The men do the dancing, while the women, who are rather given

to fatness and flaccidity, accompany them with song and tambourine.[171]

Their principal gambling game is played with thirty small sticks, of

various colors, and called by divers names, as the crab, the whale, and

the duck. The player shuffles together all the sticks, then counting out

seven, he hides them under a bunch of moss, keeping the remainder

covered at the same time. The game is to guess in which pile is the

whale, and the crab, and the duck. During the progress of the game, they

present a perfect picture of melancholic stoicism.[172]

The Thlinkeets burn their dead. An exception is made when the deceased

is a shamán or a slave; the body of the former is preserved, after

having been wrapped in furs, in a large wooden sarcophagus; and the

latter is thrown out into the ocean or anywhere, like a beast. The ashes

of the burned Thlinkeet are carefully collected in a box covered with

hieroglyphic figures, and placed upon four posts. The head of a warrior

killed in battle is cut off before the body is burned, and placed in a

box supported by two poles over the box that holds his ashes.[173] Some

tribes preserve the bodies of those who die during the winter, until

forced to get rid of them by the warmer weather of spring. Their

grandest feasts are for the dead. Besides the funeral ceremony, which is

the occasion of a festival, they hold an annual 'elevation of the dead,'

at which times they erect monuments to the memory of their departed.

The shamáns possess some knowledge of the medicinal properties of herbs,

but the healing of the body does not constitute so important a part of

their vocation as do their dealings with supernatural powers.

[Sidenote: THLINKEET CHARACTER.]

To sum up the character of the Thlinkeets, they may be called bold,

brave, shrewd, intelligent, industrious, lovers of art and music,

respectful to women and the aged; yet extremely cruel, scalping and

maiming their prisoners out of pure wantonness, thievish, lying, and

inveterate gamblers. In short they possess most of the virtues and vices

incident to savagism.

[Sidenote: THE TINNEH.]

THE TINNEH, the fifth and last division of our Hyperborean group, occupy

the 'Great Lone Land,' between Hudson Bay and the conterminous nations

already described; a land greater than the whole of the United States,

and more 'lone,' excepting absolute deserts, than any part of America.

White men there are scarcely any; wild men and wild beasts there are

few; few dense forests, and little vegetation, although the grassy

savannahs sustain droves of deer, buffalo, and other animals. The Tinneh

are, next to the Eskimos, the most northern people of the continent.

They inhabit the unexplored regions of Central Alaska, and thence extend

eastward, their area widening towards the south to the shores of Hudson

Bay. Within their domain, from the north-west to the south-east, may be

drawn a straight line measuring over four thousand miles in length.

The Tinneh,[174] may be divided into four great families of nations;

namely, the _Chepewyans_, or Athabascas, living between Hudson Bay and

the Rocky Mountains; the _Tacullies_, or Carriers, of New Caledonia or

North-western British America; the _Kutchins_, occupying both banks of

the upper Yukon and its tributaries, from near its mouth to the

Mackenzie River; and the _Kenai_, inhabiting the interior from the lower

Yukon to Copper River.

The Chepewyan family is composed of the Northern Indians, so called by

the fur-hunters at Fort Churchill as lying along the shores of Hudson

Bay, directly to their north; the Copper Indians, on Coppermine River;

the Horn Mountain and Beaver Indians, farther to the west; the

Strong-bows, Dog-ribs, Hares, Red-knives, Sheep, Sarsis, Brush-wood,

Nagailer, and Rocky-Mountain Indians, of the Mackenzie River and Rocky

Mountains.[175]

The Tacully[176] nation is divided into a multitude of petty tribes, to

which different travelers give different names according to fancy. Among

them the most important are the Talkotins and Chilkotins, Nateotetains

and Sicannis, of the upper branches of Fraser River and vicinity. It is

sufficient for our purpose, however, to treat them as one nation.

The Kutchins,[177] a large and powerful nation, are composed of the

following tribes. Commencing at the Mackenzie River, near its mouth, and

extending westward across the mountains to and down the Yukon; the

Loucheux or Quarrellers, of the Mackenzie River; the Vanta Kutchin,

Natche Kutchin, and Yukuth Kutchin, of Porcupine River and neighborhood;

the Tutchone Kutchin, Han Kutchin, Kutcha Kutchin, Gens de Bouleau, Gens

de Milieu, Tenan Kutchin, Nuclukayettes, and Newicarguts, of the Yukon

River. Their strip of territory is from one hundred to one hundred and

fifty miles in width, lying immediately south of the Eskimos, and

extending westward from the Mackenzie River about eight hundred

miles.[178]

The Kenai[179] nation includes the Ingaliks, of the Lower Yukon; the

Koltchanes, of the Kuskoquim River; and to the south-eastward, the

Kenais, of the Kenai Peninsula, and the Atnas, of Copper River.[180]

Thus we see that the Tinneh are essentially an inland people, barred out

from the frozen ocean by a thin strip of Eskimo land, and barely

touching the Pacific at Cook Inlet. Philologists, however, find

dialectic resemblances, imaginary or real, between them and the

Umpquas[181] and Apaches.[182]

[Sidenote: THE CHEPEWYANS.]

The name Chepewyan signifies 'pointed coat,' and derives its origin from

the parka, coat, or outer garment, so universally common throughout this

region. It is made of several skins differently dressed and ornamented

in different localities, but always cut with the skirt pointed before

and behind. The Chepewyans believe that their ancestors migrated from

the east, and therefore those of them who are born nearest their eastern

boundary, are held in the greatest estimation. The Dog-ribs alone refer

their origin to the west.

The Chepewyans are physically characterized by a long full face,[183]

tall slim figure;[184] in complexion they are darker than coast

tribes,[185] and have small piercing black eyes,[186] flowing

hair,[187] and tattooed cheeks and forehead.[188] Altogether they are

pronounced an inferior race.[189] Into the composition of their garments

enter beaver, moose, and deer-skin, dressed with and without the hair,

sewed with sinews and ornamented with claws, horns, teeth, and

feathers.[190]

[Sidenote: THE NORTHERN INDIANS.]

The Northern Indian man is master of his household.[191] He marries

without ceremony, and divorces his wife at his pleasure.[192] A man of

forty buys or fights for a spouse of twelve,[193] and when tired of her

whips her and sends her away. Girls on arriving at the age of womanhood

must retire from the village and live for a time apart.[194] The

Chepewyans inhabit huts of brush and portable skin tents. They derive

their origin from a dog. At one time they were so strongly imbued with

respect for their canine ancestry that they entirely ceased to employ

dogs in drawing their sledges, greatly to the hardship of the women upon

whom this laborious task fell.

Their food consists mostly of fish and reindeer, the latter being easily

taken in snares. Much of their land is barren, but with sufficient

vegetation to support numerous herds of reindeer, and fish abound in

their lakes and streams. Their hunting grounds are held by clans, and

descend by inheritance from one generation to another, which has a

salutary effect upon the preservation of game. Indian law requires the

successful hunter to share the spoils of the chase with all present.

When game is abundant, their tent-fires never die, but are surrounded

during all hours of the day and night by young and old cooking their

food.[195]

Superabundance of food, merchandise, or anything which they wish to

preserve without the trouble of carrying it about with them while on

hunting or foraging expeditions, is _cached_, as they term it; from the

French, _cacher_, to conceal. Canadian fur-hunters often resorted to

this artifice, but the practice was common among the natives before the

advent of Europeans. A sudden necessity often arises in Indian countries

for the traveler to relieve himself from burdens. This is done by

digging a hole in the earth and depositing the load therein, so artfully

covering it as to escape detection by the wily savages. Goods may be

cached in a cave, or in the branches of a tree, or in the hollow of a

log. The camp-fire is frequently built over the spot where stores have

been deposited, in order that the disturbance of the surface may not be

detected.

Their weapons[196] and their utensils[197] are of the most primitive

kind--stone and bone being used in place of metal.

Their dances, which are always performed in the night, are not original,

but are borrowed from the Southern and Dog-rib Indians. They consist in

raising the feet alternately in quick succession, as high as possible

without moving the body, to the sound of a drum or rattle.[198]

They never bury their dead, but leave the bodies where they fall, to be

devoured by the birds and beasts of prey.[199] Their religion consists

chiefly in songs and speeches to these birds and beasts and to imaginary

beings, for assistance in performing cures of the sick.[200] Old age is

treated with disrespect and neglect, one half of both sexes dying before

their time for want of care. The Northern Indians are frequently at war

with the Eskimos and Southern Indians, for whom they at all times

entertain the most inveterate hatred. The Copper Indians, bordering on

the southern boundary of the Eskimos at the Coppermine River, were

originally the occupants of the territory south of Great Slave Lake.

The Dog-ribs, or Slavés as they are called by neighboring nations, are

indolent, fond of amusement, but mild and hospitable. They are so

debased, as savages, that the men do the laborious work, while the women

employ themselves in household affairs and ornamental needlework. Young

married men have been known to exhibit specimens of their wives'

needle-work with pride. From their further advancement in civilization,

and the tradition which they hold of having migrated from the westward,

were it not that their language differs from that of contiguous tribes

only in accent, they might naturally be considered of different origin.

Bands of Dog-ribs meeting after a long absence greet each other with a

dance, which frequently continues for two or three days. First clearing

a spot of ground, they take an arrow in the right hand and a bow in the

left, and turning their backs each band to the other, they approach

dancing, and when close together they feign to perceive each other's

presence for the first time; the bow and arrow are instantly transferred

from one hand to the other, in token of their non-intention to use them

against friends. They are very improvident, and frequently are driven to

cannibalism and suicide.[201]

[Sidenote: HARES, DOG-RIBS, AND TACULLIES.]

The Hare Indians, who speak a dialect of the Tinneh scarcely to be

distinguished from that of the Dog-ribs, are looked upon by their

neighbors as great conjurers. The Hare and Sheep Indians look upon their

women as inferior beings. From childhood they are inured to every

description of drudgery, and though not treated with special cruelty,

they are placed at the lowest point in the scale of humanity. The

characteristic stoicism of the red race is not manifested by these

tribes. Socialism is practiced to a considerable extent. The hunter is

allowed only the tongue and ribs of the animal he kills, the remainder

being divided among the members of the tribe.

The Hares and Dog-ribs do not cut the finger-nails of female children

until four years of age, in order that they may not prove lazy; the

infant is not allowed food until four days after birth, in order to

accustom it to fasting in the next world.

The Sheep Indians are reported as being cannibals. The Red-knives

formerly hunted reindeer and musk-oxen at the northern end of Great Bear

Lake, but they were finally driven eastward by the Dog-ribs. Laws and

government are unknown to the Chepewyans.[202]

[Sidenote: THE TACULLIES, OR CARRIERS.]

The Tacullies, or, as they were denominated by the fur-traders,

'Carriers,' are the chief tribe of New Caledonia, or North-western

British America. They call themselves Tacullies, or 'men who go upon

water,' as their travels from one village to another are mostly

accomplished in canoes. This, with their sobriquet of 'Carriers,'

clearly indicates their ruling habitudes. The men are more finely formed

than the women, the latter being short, thick, and disproportionately

large in their lower limbs. In their persons they are slovenly; in their

dispositions, lively and contented. As they are able to procure

food[203] with but little labor, they are naturally indolent, but appear

to be able and willing to work when occasion requires it. Their

relations with white people have been for the most part amicable; they

are seldom quarrelsome, though not lacking bravery. The people are

called after the name of the village in which they dwell. Their

primitive costume consists of hare, musk-rat, badger, and beaver skins,

sometimes cut into strips an inch broad, and woven or interlaced. The

nose is perforated by both sexes, the men suspending therefrom a brass,

copper, or shell ornament, the women a wooden one, tipped with a bead at

either end.[204] Their avarice lies in the direction of hiaqua shells,

which find their way up from the sea-coast through other tribes. In

1810, these beads were the circulating medium of the country, and twenty

of them would buy a good beaver-skin. Their paint is made of vermilion

obtained from the traders, or of a pulverized red stone mixed with

grease. They are greatly addicted to gambling, and do not appear at all

dejected by ill fortune, spending days and nights in the winter season

at their games, frequently gambling away every rag of clothing and every

trinket in their possession. They also stake parts of a garment or other

article, and if losers, cut off a piece of coat-sleeve or a foot of

gun-barrel. Native cooking vessels are made of bark, or of the roots or

fibres of trees, woven so as to hold water, in which are placed heated

stones for the purpose of cooking food.[205] Polygamy is practiced, but

not generally. The Tacullies are fond of their wives, performing the

most of the household drudgery in order to relieve them, and

consequently they are very jealous of them. But to their unmarried

daughters, strange as it may seem, they allow every liberty without

censure or shame. The reason which they give for this strange custom is,

that the purity of their wives is thereby better preserved.[206]

During a portion of every year the Tacullies dwell in villages,

conveniently situated for catching and drying salmon. In April they

visit the lakes and take small fish; and after these fail, they return

to their villages and subsist upon the fish they have dried, and upon

herbs and berries. From August to October, salmon are plentiful again.

Beaver are caught in nets made from strips of cariboo-skins, and also in

cypress and steel traps. They are also sometimes shot with guns or with

bows and arrows. Smaller game they take in various kinds of traps.

The civil polity of the Tacullies is of a very primitive character. Any

person may become a _miuty_ or chief who will occasionally provide a

village feast. A malefactor may find protection from the avenger in the

dwelling of a chief, so long as he is permitted to remain there, or even

afterwards if he has upon his back any one of the chief's garments.

Disputes are usually adjusted by some old man of the tribe. The

boundaries of the territories belonging to the different villages are

designated by mountains, rivers, or other natural objects, and the

rights of towns, as well as of individuals, are most generally

respected; but broils are constantly occasioned by murders, abduction of

women, and other causes, between these separate societies.[207]

When seriously ill, the Carriers deem it an indispensable condition to

their recovery that every secret crime should be confessed to the

magician. Murder, of any but a member of the same village, is not

considered a heinous offense. They at first believed reading and writing

to be the exercise of magic art. The Carriers know little of medicinal

herbs. Their priest or magician is also the doctor, but before

commencing his operations in the sick room, he must receive a fee,

which, if his efforts prove unsuccessful, he is obliged to restore. The

curative process consists in singing a melancholy strain over the

invalid, in which all around join. This mitigates pain, and often

restores health. Their winter tenements are frequently made by opening a

spot of earth to the depth of two feet, across which a ridge-pole is

placed, supported at either end by posts; poles are then laid from the

sides of the excavation to the ridge-pole and covered with hay. A hole

is left in the top for purposes of entrance and exit, and also in order

to allow the escape of smoke.[208]

Slavery is common with them; all who can afford it keeping slaves. They

use them as beasts of burden, and treat them most inhumanly. The

country of the Sicannis in the Rocky Mountains is sterile, yielding the

occupants a scanty supply of food and clothing. They are nevertheless

devotedly attached to their bleak land, and will fight for their rude

homes with the most patriotic ardor.

[Sidenote: NEHANNES AND TALKOTINS.]

The Nehannes usually pass the summer in the vicinity of the sea-coast,

and scour the interior during the winter for furs, which they obtain

from inland tribes by barter or plunder, and dispose of to the European

traders. It is not a little remarkable that this warlike and turbulent

horde was at one time governed by a woman. Fame gives her a fair

complexion, with regular features, and great intelligence. Her influence

over her fiery people, it is said, was perfect; while her warriors, the

terror and scourge of the surrounding country, quailed before her eye.

Her word was law, and was obeyed with marvelous alacrity. Through her

influence the condition of the women of her tribe was greatly raised.

Great ceremonies, cruelty, and superstition attend burning the dead,

which custom obtains throughout this region,[209] and, as usual in

savagism, woman is the sufferer. When the father of a household dies,

the entire family, or, if a chief, the tribe, are summoned to present

themselves.[210] Time must be given to those most distant to reach the

village before the ceremony begins.[211] The Talkotin wife, when all is

ready, is compelled to ascend the funeral pile, throw herself upon her

husband's body and there remain until nearly suffocated, when she is

permitted to descend. Still she must keep her place near the burning

corpse, keep it in a proper position, tend the fire, and if through

pain or faintness she fails in the performance of her duties, she is

held up and pressed forward by others; her cries meanwhile are drowned

in wild songs, accompanied by the beating of drums.[212]

When the funeral pile of a Tacully is fired, the wives of the deceased,

if there are more than one, are placed at the head and foot of the body.

Their duty there is to publicly demonstrate their affection for the

departed; which they do by resting their head upon the dead bosom, by

striking in frenzied love the body, nursing and battling the fire

meanwhile. And there they remain until the hair is burned from their

head, until, suffocated and almost senseless, they stagger off to a

little distance; then recovering, attack the corpse with new vigor,

striking it first with one hand and then with the other, until the form

of the beloved is reduced to ashes. Finally these ashes are gathered up,

placed in sacks, and distributed one sack to each wife, whose duty it is

to carry upon her person the remains of the departed for the space of

two years. During this period of mourning the women are clothed in rags,

kept in a kind of slavery, and not allowed to marry. Not unfrequently

these poor creatures avoid their term of servitude by suicide. At the

expiration of the time, a feast is given them, and they are again free.

Structures are erected as repositories for the ashes of their dead,[213]

in which the bag or box containing the remains is placed. These

grave-houses are of split boards about one inch in thickness, six feet

high, and decorated with painted representations of various heavenly and

earthly objects.

The Indians of the Rocky Mountains burn with the deceased all his

effects, and even those of his nearest relatives, so that it not

unfrequently happens that a family is reduced to absolute starvation in

the dead of winter, when it is impossible to procure food. The motive

assigned to this custom is, that there may be nothing left to bring the

dead to remembrance.

A singular custom prevails among the Nateotetain women, which is to cut

off one joint of a finger upon the death of a near relative. In

consequence of this practice some old women may be seen with two joints

off every finger on both hands. The men bear their sorrows more

stoically, being content in such cases with shaving the head and cutting

their flesh with flints.[214]

[Sidenote: KUTCHIN CHARACTERISTICS.]

The Kutchins are the flower of the Tinneh family. They are very

numerous, numbering about twenty-two tribes. They are a more noble and

manly people than either the Eskimos upon the north or the contiguous

Tinneh tribes upon their own southern boundary. The finest specimens

dwell on the Yukon River. The women tattoo the chin with a black

pigment, and the men draw a black stripe down the forehead and nose,

frequently crossing the forehead and cheeks with red lines, and

streaking the chin alternately with red and black. Their features are

more regular than those of their neighbors, more expressive of boldness,

frankness, and candor; their foreheads higher, and their complexions

lighter. The Tenan Kutchin of the Tananah River, one of the largest

tribes of the Yukon Valley, are somewhat wilder and more ferocious in

their appearance. The boys are precocious, and the girls marry at

fifteen.[215] The Kutchins of Peel River, as observed by Mr Isbister,

"are an athletic and fine-looking race; considerable above the average

stature, most of them being upwards of six feet in height and remarkably

well proportioned."

Their clothing is made from the skins of reindeer, dressed with the hair

on; their coat cut after the fashion of the Eskimos, with skirts peaked

before and behind, and elaborately trimmed with beads and dyed

porcupine-quills. The Kutchins, in common with the Eskimos, are

distinguished by a similarity in the costume of the sexes. Men and women

wear the same description of breeches. Some of the men have a long flap

attached to their deer-skin shirts, shaped like a beaver's tail, and

reaching nearly to the ground.[216] Of the coat, Mr Whymper says: "If

the reader will imagine a man dressed in two swallow-tailed coats, one

of them worn as usual, the other covering his stomach and buttoned

behind, he will get some idea of this garment." Across the shoulders and

breast they wear a broad band of beads, with narrower bands round the

forehead and ankles, and along the seams of their leggins. They are

great traders; beads are their wealth, used in the place of money, and

the rich among them literally load themselves with necklaces and strings

of various patterns.[217] The nose and ears are adorned with

shells.[218] The hair is worn in a long cue, ornamented with feathers,

and bound with strings of beads and shells at the head, with flowing

ends, and so saturated with grease and birds' down as to swell it

sometimes to the thickness of the neck. They pay considerable attention

to personal cleanliness. The Kutchins construct both permanent

underground dwellings and the temporary summer-hut or tent.[219]

[Sidenote: FOOD OF THE KUTCHINS.]

On the Yukon, the greatest scarcity of food is in the spring. The

winter's stores are exhausted, and the bright rays of the sun upon the

melting snow almost blind the eyes of the deer-hunter. The most

plentiful supply of game is in August, September, and October, after

which the forming of ice on the rivers prevents fishing until December,

when the winter traps are set. The reindeer are in good condition in

August, and geese are plentiful. Salmon ascend the river in June, and

are taken in great quantities until about the first of September; fish

are dried or smoked without salt, for winter use. Fur-hunting begins in

October; and in December, trade opens with the Eskimos, with whom furs

are exchanged for oil and seal-skins.

The Kutchin of the Yukon are unacquainted with nets, but catch their

fish by means of weirs or stakes planted across rivers and narrow lakes,

having openings for wicker baskets, by which they intercept the fish.

They hunt reindeer in the mountains and take moose-deer in snares.[220]

Both Kutchins and Eskimos are very jealous regarding their boundaries;

but the incessant warfare which is maintained between the littoral and

interior people of the northern coast near the Mackenzie river, is not

maintained by the north-western tribes. One of either people, however,

if found hunting out of his own territory, is very liable to be shot.

Some Kutchin tribes permit the Eskimos to take the meat of the game

which they kill, provided they leave the skin at the nearest

village.[221]

The Kutchins of the Yukon River manufacture cups and pots from clay, and

ornament them with crosses, dots, and lines; moulding them by hand after

various patterns, first drying them in the sun and then baking them. The

Eskimo lamp is also sometimes made of clay. The Tinneh make paint of

pulverized colored stones or of earth, mixed with glue. The glue is made

from buffalo feet and applied by a moose-hair brush.

In the manufacture of their boats the Kutchins of the Yukon use bark as

a substitute for the seal-skins of the coast. They first make a light

frame of willow or birch, from eight to sixteen feet in length. Then

with fine spruce-fir roots they sew together strips of birch bark, cover

the frame, and calk the seams with spruce gum. They are propelled by

single paddles or poles. Those of the Mackenzie River are after the same

pattern.[222]

In absence of law, murder and all other crimes are compounded for.[223]

A man to be well married must be either rich or strong. A good hunter,

who can accumulate beads, and a good wrestler, who can win brides by

force, may have from two to five wives. The women perform all domestic

duties, and eat after the husband is satisfied, but the men paddle the

boats, and have even been known to carry their wives ashore so that they

might not wet their feet. The women carry their infants in a sort of

bark saddle, fastened to their back; they bandage their feet in order to

keep them small.[224] Kutchin amusements are wrestling, leaping,

dancing, and singing. They are great talkers, and etiquette forbids any

interruption to the narrative of a new comer.[225]

[Sidenote: THE TENAN KUTCHIN.]

The Tenan Kutchin, 'people of the mountains,' inhabiting the country

south of Fort Yukon which is drained by the river Tananah, are a wild,

ungovernable horde, their territory never yet having been invaded by

white people. The river upon which they dwell is supposed to take its

rise near the upper Yukon. They allow no women in their deer-hunting

expeditions. They smear their leggins and hair with red ochre and

grease. The men part their hair in the middle and separate it into

locks, which, when properly dressed, look like rolls of red mud about

the size of a finger; one bunch of locks is secured in a mass which

falls down the neck, by a band of dentalium shells, and two smaller

rolls hang down either side of the face. After being soaked in grease

and tied, the head is powdered with finely cut swan's down, which

adheres to the greasy hair. The women wear few ornaments, perform more

than the ordinary amount of drudgery, and are treated more like dogs

than human beings. Chastity is scarcely known among them. The Kutcha

Kutchin, 'people of the lowland,' are cleaner and better mannered.

The Kutchins have a singular system of totems. The whole nation is

divided into three castes, called respectively _Chitcheah_,

_Tengratsey_, and _Natsahi_, each occupying a distinct territory. Two

persons of the same caste are not allowed to marry; but a man of one

caste must marry a woman of another. The mother gives caste to the

children, so that as the fathers die off the caste of the country

constantly changes. This system operates strongly against war between

tribes; as in war, it is caste against caste, and not tribe against

tribe. As the father is never of the same caste as the son, who receives

caste from his mother, there can never be intertribal war without

ranging fathers and sons against each other. When a child is named, the

father drops his former name and substitutes that of the child, so that

the father receives his name from the child, and not the child from the

father.

They have scarcely any government; their chiefs are elected on account

of wealth or ability, and their authority is very limited.[226] Their

custom is to burn the dead, and enclose the ashes in a box placed upon

posts; some tribes enclose the body in an elevated box without

burning.[227]

[Sidenote: THE KENAI.]

The Kenai are a fine, manly race, in which Baer distinguishes

characteristics decidedly American, and clearly distinct from the

Asiatic Eskimos. One of the most powerful Kenai tribes is the

Unakatanas, who dwell upon the Koyukuk River, and plant their villages

along the banks of the lower Yukon for a distance of one hundred and

fifty miles. They are bold and ferocious, dominative even to the giving

of fashion in dress.

That part of the Yukon which runs through their territory abounds with

moose, which during the summer frequent the water in order to avoid the

mosquitos, and as the animals are clumsy swimmers, the Indians easily

capture them. Their women occupy a very inferior position, being obliged

to do more drudgery and embellish their dress with fewer ornaments than

those of the upper tribes. The men wear a heavy fringe of beads or

shells upon their dress, equal sometimes to two hundred marten-skins in

value.

At Nuklukahyet, where the Tananah River joins the Yukon, is a neutral

trading-ground to which all the surrounding tribes resort in the spring

for traffic. Skins are their moneyed currency, the beaver-skin being the

standard; one 'made' beaver-skin represents two marten-skins.

The Ingaliks inhabiting the Yukon near its mouth call themselves _Kaeyah

Khatana_. Their dialect is totally distinct from the Malemutes, their

neighbors on the west, but shows an affinity with that of the Unakatanas

to their east. Tobacco they both smoke and snuff. The smoke they

swallow; snuff is drawn into the nostrils through a wooden tube. They

manufacture snuff from leaf tobacco by means of a wooden mortar and

pestle, and carry bone or wooden snuff-boxes. They are described by

travelers as a timid, sensitive people, and remarkably honest. Ingalik

women are delivered kneeling, and without pain, being seldom detained

from their household duties for more than an hour. The infant is washed,

greased, and fed, and is seldom weaned under two or three years. The

women live longer than the men; some of them reaching sixty, while the

men rarely attain more than forty-five years.

The Koltschanes, whose name in the dialect of the Kenai signifies

'guest,' and in that of the Atnas of Copper River, 'stranger,' have been

charged with great cruelty, and even cannibalism, but without special

foundation. Wrangell believes the Koltschanes, Atnas, and Kolosches to

be one people.

The Kenai, of the Kenaian peninsula, upon recovery from dangerous

illness, give a feast to those who expressed sympathy during the

affliction. If a bounteous provision is made upon these occasions, a

chieftainship may be obtained thereby; and although the power thus

acquired does not descend to one's heir, he may be conditionally

recognized as chief. Injuries are avenged by the nearest relative, but

if a murder is committed by a member of another clan, all the allied

families rise to avenge the wrong. When a person dies, the whole

community assemble and mourn. The nearest kinsman, arrayed in his best

apparel, with blackened face, his nose and head decked with eagle's

feathers, leads the ceremony. All sit round a fire and howl, while the

master of the lamentation recounts the notable deeds of the departed,

amidst the ringing of bells, and violent stampings, and contortions of

his body. The clothing is then distributed to the relatives, the body is

burned, the bones collected and interred, and at the expiration of a

year a feast is held to the memory of the deceased, after which it is

not lawful for a relative to mention his name.

The lover, if his suit is accepted, must perform a year's service for

his bride. The wooing is in this wise: early some morning he enters the

abode of the fair one's father, and without speaking a word proceeds to

bring water, prepare food, and to heat the bath-room. In reply to the

question why he performs these services, he answers that he desires the

daughter for a wife. At the expiration of the year, without further

ceremony, he takes her home, with a gift; but if she is not well treated

by her husband, she may return to her father, and take with her the

dowry. The wealthy may have several wives, but the property of each wife

is distinct. They are nomadic in their inclinations and traverse the

interior to a considerable distance in pursuit of game.

The Atnas are a small tribe inhabiting the Atna or Copper River. They

understand the art of working copper, and have commercial relations with

surrounding tribes. In the spring, before the breaking up of ice upon

the lakes and rivers, they hunt reindeer, driving them into angle-shaped

wicker-work corrals, where they are killed. In the autumn another

general hunt takes place, when deer are driven into lakes, and pursued

and killed in boats. Their food and clothing depend entirely upon their

success in these forays, as they are unable to obtain fish in sufficient

quantities for their sustenance; and when unsuccessful in the chase,

whole families die of starvation. Those who can afford it, keep slaves,

buying them from the Koltschanes. They burn their dead, then carefully

collect the ashes in a new reindeer-skin, enclose the skin in a box, and

place the box on posts or in a tree. Every year they celebrate a feast

in commemoration of their dead. Baer asserts that the Atnas divide the

year into fifteen months, which are designated only by their numbers;

ten of them belong to autumn and winter, and five to spring and summer.

[Sidenote: TINNEH CHARACTER.]

The Tinneh character, if we may accept the assertions of various

travelers, visiting different parts under widely different

circumstances, presents a multitude of phases. Thus it is said of the

Chepewyans by Mackenzie, that they are "sober, timorous, and vagrant,

with a selfish disposition which has sometimes created suspicions of

their integrity. They are also of a quarrelous disposition, and are

continually making complaints which they express by a constant

repetition of the word _edmy_, 'it is hard,' in a whiny and plaintive

tone of voice. So indolent that numbers perish every year from famine.

Suicide is not uncommon among them." Hearne asserts that they are morose

and covetous; that they have no gratitude; are great beggars; are

insolent, if any respect is shown them; that they cheat on all

opportunities; yet they are mild, rarely get drunk; and "never proceed

to violence beyond bad language;" that they steal on every opportunity

from the whites, but very rarely from each other; and although regarding

all property, including wives, as belonging to the strongest, yet they

only wrestle, and rarely murder. Of the same people Sir John Franklin

says, that they are naturally indolent, selfish, and great beggars. "I

never saw men," he writes, "who either received or bestowed a gift with

such bad grace." The Dog-ribs are "of a mild, hospitable, but rather

indolent disposition," fond of dancing and singing. According to the

same traveler the Copper Indians are superior, in personal character, to

any other Chepewyans. "Their delicate and humane attentions to us," he

remarks, "in a period of great distress, are indelibly engraven on our

memories." Simpson says that it is a general rule among the traders not

to believe the first story of an Indian. Although sometimes bearing

suffering with fortitude, the least sickness makes them say, "I am going

to die," and the improvidence of the Indian character is greatly

aggravated by the custom of destroying all the property of deceased

relatives. Sir John Richardson accuses the Hare Indians of timidity,

standing in great fear of the Eskimos, and being always in want of food.

They are practical socialists, 'great liars,' but 'strictly honest.'

Hospitality is not a virtue with them. According to Richardson, neither

the Eskimos, Dog-ribs, nor Hare Indians, feel the least shame in being

detected in falsehood, and invariably practice it if they think that

they can thereby gain any of their petty ends. Even in their familiar

intercourse with each other, the Indians seldom tell the truth in the

first instance, and if they succeed in exciting admiration or

astonishment, their invention runs on without check. From the manner of

the speaker, rather than by his words, is his truth or falsehood

inferred, and often a very long interrogation is necessary to elicit the

real fact. The comfort, and not unfrequently even the lives of parties

of the timid Hare Indians are sacrificed by this miserable propensity.

The Hare and Dog-rib women are certainly at the bottom of the scale of

humanity in North America. Ross thinks that they are "tolerably honest;

not bloodthirsty, nor cruel;" "confirmed liars, far from being chaste."

According to Harmon, one of the earliest and most observing travelers

among them, the Tacullies "are a quiet, inoffensive people," and

"perhaps the most honest on the face of the earth." They "are unusually

talkative," and "take great delight in singing or humming or whistling a

dull air." "Murder is not considered as a crime of great magnitude." He

considers the Sicannis the bravest of the Tacully tribes.

But the Kutchins bear off the palm for honesty. Says Whymper: "Finding

the loads too great for our dogs, we raised an erection of poles, and

deposited some bags thereon. I may here say, once for all, that our men

often left goods, consisting of tea, flour, molasses, bacon, and all

kinds of miscellaneous articles, scattered in this way over the country,

and that they remained untouched by the Indians, who frequently traveled

past them." Simpson testifies of the Loucheux that "a bloody intent with

them lurks not under a smile." Murray reports the Kutchins treacherous;

Richardson did not find them so. Jones declares that "they differ

entirely from the Tinneh tribes of the Mackenzie, being generous,

honest, hospitable, proud, high-spirited, and quick to revenge an

injury."

TRIBAL BOUNDARIES.

Accurately to draw partition lines between primitive nations is

impossible. Migrating with the seasons, constantly at war, driving and

being driven far past the limits of hereditary boundaries, extirpating

and being extirpated, overwhelming, intermingling; like a human sea,

swelling and surging in its wild struggle with the winds of fate, they

come and go, here to-day, yonder to-morrow. A traveler passing over the

country finds it inhabited by certain tribes; another coming after finds

all changed. One writer gives certain names to certain nations; another

changes the name, or gives to the nation a totally different locality.

An approximation, however, can be made sufficiently correct for

practical purposes; and to arrive at this, I will give at the end of

each chapter all the authorities at my command; that from the

statements of all, whether conflicting or otherwise, the truth may be

very nearly arrived at. All nations, north of the fifty-fifth parallel,

as before mentioned, I call Hyperboreans.

To the Eskimos, I give the Arctic sea-board from the Coppermine River to

Kotzebue Sound. Late travelers make a distinction between the Malemutes

and Kaveaks of Norton Sound and the Eskimos. Whymper calls the former 'a

race of tall and stout people, but in other respect, much resembling the

Esquimaux.' _Alaska_, p. 159. Sir John Richardson, in his _Journal_,

vol. i., p. 341, places them on the 'western coast, by Cook's Sound and

Tchugatz Bay, nearly to Mount St. Elias;' but in his _Polar Regions_, p.

299, he terminates them at Kotzebue Sound. Early writers give them the

widest scope. 'Die südlichsten sind in Amerika, auf der Küste Labrador,

wo nach Charlevoix dieser Völkerstamm den Namen Esquimaux bey den in

der Nähe wohnenden Abenaki führte, und auch an der benachbarten Ostseite

von Neu-Fundland, ferner westlich noch unter der Halbinsel Alaska.'

_Vater_, _Mithridates_, vol. iii., pt. iii., p. 425. Dr Latham, in his

_Varieties of Man_, treats the inhabitants of the Aleutian Islands as

Eskimos, and in _Native Races of the Russian Empire_, p. 289, he gives

them 'the whole of the coast of the Arctic Ocean, and the coast from

Behring Strait to Cook Inlet.' Prichard, _Researches_, vol. v., p. 371,

requires more complete evidence before he can conclude that the Aleuts

are not Eskimos. Being entirely unacquainted with the great Kutchin

family in the Yukon Valley, he makes the Carriers of New Caledonia

conterminous with the Eskimos. The boundary lines between the Eskimos

and the interior Indian tribes 'are generally formed by the summit of

the watershed between the small rivers which empty into the sea and

those which fall into the Yukon.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 144. Malte-Brun,

_Précis de la Géographie_, vol. v., p. 317, goes to the other extreme.

'Les Esquimaux,' he declares, 'habitent depuis le golfe Welcome jusqu'au

fleuve Mackenzie, et probablement jusqu'au détroit de Bering; ils

s'étendent au sud jusqu'au lac de l'Esclave.' Ludewig, _Aboriginal

Languages_, p. 69, divides them into 'Eskimo proper, on the shores of

Labrador, and the Western Eskimos.' Gallatin sweepingly asserts that

'they are the sole native inhabitants of the shores of all the seas,

bays, inlets, and islands of America, north of the sixtieth degree of

north latitude.' _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 9. The

Western Eskimos, says Beechey, 'inhabit the north-west coast of America,

from 60° 34´ N. to 71° 24´ N.' _Voy._, vol. ii., p. 299. 'Along the

entire coast of America.' _Armstrong's Nar._, p. 191.

[Sidenote: ESKIMOS AND KONIAGAS.]

The tribal subdivisions of the Eskimos are as follows:--At Coppermine

River they are known by the name of _Naggeuktoomutes_, 'deer-horns.' At

the eastern outlet of the Mackenzie they are called _Kittear_. Between

the Mackenzie River and Barter Reef they call themselves

_Kangmali-Innuin_. The tribal name at Point Barrow is _Nuwangmeun_. 'The

_Nuna-tangmë-un_ inhabit the country traversed by the Nunatok, a river

which falls into Kotzebue Sound.' _Richardson's Pol. Reg._, p. 300. From

Cape Lisburn to Icy Cape the tribal appellation is _Kitegues_. 'Deutsche

Karten zeigen uns noch im Nord-west-Ende des russischen Nordamerika's,

in dieser so anders gewandten Küstenlinie, nördlich vom Kotzebue-Sund:

im westlichen Theile des Küstenlandes, das sie West-Georgien nennen,

vom Cap Lisburn bis über das Eiscap; hinlaufend das Volk der Kiteguen.'

_Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 713. 'The tribes appear to

be separated from each other by a neutral ground, across which small

parties venture in the summer for barter.' The _Tuski_, _Tschuktschi_,

or _Tchutski_, of the easternmost point of Asia, have also been referred

to the opposite coast of America for their habitation. The Tschuktchi

'occupy the north-western coast of Russian Asia, and the opposite shores

of north-western America.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 191.

THE KONIAGAN nation occupies the shores of Bering Sea, from Kotzebue

Sound to the Island of Kadiak, including a part of the Alaskan

Peninsula, and the Koniagan and Chugatschen Islands. The _Koniagas_

proper inhabit Kadiak, and the contiguous islands. _Buschmann_, _Spuren

der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 676. 'The Konægi are inhabitants of the Isle of

Kodiak.' _Prichard's Researches_, vol. v., p. 371. 'Die eigentlichen

Konjagen oder Bewohner der Insel Kadjak.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p.

4. 'Zu den letztern rechnet man die Aleuten von Kadjack, deren Sprache

von allen Küstenbewohnern von der Tschugatschen-Bay, bis an die

Berings-Strasse und selbst weiter noch die herrschende ist.' _Baer_,

_Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 58. 'From Iliamna Lake to the 159th degree of west

longitude.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 401. 'La côte qui s'étend depuis le

golfe Kamischezkaja jusqu'au Nouveau-Cornouaille, est habitée par cinq

peuplades qui forment autant de grandes divisions territoriales dans les

colonies de la Russie Américaine. Leurs noms sont: Koniagi, Kenayzi,

Tschugatschi, Ugalachmiuti et Koliugi.' _Humboldt_, _Pol._, tom. i., p.

347.

The _Chugatsches_ inhabit the islands and shores of Prince William

Sound. 'Die Tchugatschen bewohnen die grössten Inseln der Bai

Tschugatsk, wie Zukli, Chtagaluk u. a. und ziehen sich an der Südküste

der Halbinsel Kenai nach Westen bis zur Einfahrt in den Kenaischen

Meerbusen.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 4. 'Die Tschugatschen sind

Ankömmlinge von der Insel Kadjack, die während innerer Zwistigkeiten von

dort vertrieben, sich zu ihren jetzigen Wohnsitzen an den Ufern von

Prince William's Sound und gegen Westen bis zum Eingange von Cook's

Inlet hingewendet haben.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 116. 'Les

Tschugatschi occupent le pays qui s'étend depuis l'extrémité

septentrionale de l'entrée de Cook jusqu'à l'est de la baie du prince

Guillaume (golfe Tschugatskaja.)' _Humboldt_, _Pol._, tom. i., p. 348.

According to Latham, _Native Races_, p. 290, they are the most southern

members of the family. The Tschugazzi 'live between the Ugalyachmutzi

and the Kenaizi.' _Prichard's Researches_, vol. v., p. 371. 'Occupy the

shores and islands of Chugach Gulf, and the southwest coasts of the

peninsula of Kenai.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 401. Tschugatschi, 'Prince

William Sound, and Cook's Inlet.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 191.

Tchugatchih, 'claim as their hereditary possessions the coast lying

between Bristol Bay and Beering's Straits.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol.

i., p. 364.

The _Aglegmutes_ occupy the shores of Bristol Bay from the river

Nushagak along the western coast of the Alaskan Peninsula, to latitude

56°. 'Die Aglegmjuten, von der Mündung des Flusses Nuschagakh bis zum

57° oder 56° an der Westküste der Halbinsel Aljaska; haben also die Ufer

der Bristol-Bai inne.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 4. Dall calls them

Oglemutes, and says that they inhabit 'the north coast of Aliaska from

the 159th degree of west longitude to the head of Bristol Bay, and along

the north shore of that Bay to Point Etolin.' _Alaska_, p. 405. Die

Agolegmüten, an den Ausmündungen der Flüsse Nuschagack und Nackneck,

ungefähr 500 an der Zahl.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 121.

The _Kijataigmutes_ dwell upon the banks of the river Nushagak and along

the coast westward to Cape Newenham. 'Die Kijataigmjuten wohnen an den

Ufern des Flusses Nuschagakh, sowie seines Nebenflusses Iligajakh.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 5. Dall says that they call themselves

Nushergagmut, and 'inhabit the coast near the mouth of the Nushergak

River, and westward to Cape Newenham.' _Alaska_, p. 405. 'Die Kijaten

oder Kijataigmüten an den Flüssen Nuschagack und Ilgajack.' _Baer_,

_Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 121. 'Am Fl. Nuschagak.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der

Aztek. Sprache_, p. 760.

The _Agulmutes_ inhabit the coast between the rivers Kuskoquim and

Kishunak. 'Die Aguljmjuten haben sowohl den Küstenstrich als das Innere

des Landes zwischen den Mündungen des Kuskokwim und des Kishunakh inne.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 5. 'This tribe extends from near Cape

Avinoff nearly to Cape Romanzoff.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 406. 'Den

Agulmüten, am Flusse Kwichlüwack.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 122. 'An

der Kwickpak-Münd.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 719.

The _Kuskoquigmutes_ occupy the banks of Kuskoquim River and Bay. 'Die

Kuskokwigmjuten bewohnen die Ufer des Flusses Kuskokwim von seiner

Mündung bis zur Ansiedelung Kwygyschpainagmjut in der Nähe der

Odinotschka Kalmakow.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 5. The Kuskwogmuts

'inhabit both shores of Kuskoquim Bay, and some little distance up that

river.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 405. 'Die Kuskokwimer an dem Flusse

Kuskokwim und andern kleinen Zuflüssen desselben und an den Ufern der

südlich von diesem Flusse gelegenen Seen.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p.

122. 'Between the rivers Nushagak, Ilgajak, Chulitna, and Kuskokwina, on

the sea-shore.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 98.

The _Magemutes_ live between the rivers Kishunak and Kipunaiak. 'Die

Magmjuten oder Magagmjuten, zwischen den Flüssen Kiskunakh und

Kipunajakh.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 5. 'These inhabit the vicinity

of Cape Romanzoff and reach nearly to the Yukon-mouth.' _Dall's Alaska_,

p. 407. 'Magimuten, am Flusse Kyschunack.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p.

122. 'Im S des Norton Busens.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_,

p. 766.

The _Kwichpagmutes_, or inhabitants of the large river, dwell upon the

Kwichpak River, from the coast range to the Uallik. 'Die Kwichpagmjuten,

haben ihre Ansiedelungen am Kwickpakh vom Küstengebirge an bis zum

Nebenflusse Uallik.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 5. 'Kuwichpackmüten,

am Flusse Kuwichpack.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 122. 'Tlagga Silla,

or little dogs, nearer to the mouth of the Yukon, and probably

conterminous with the Eskimo Kwichpak-meut.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p.

293. On Whymper's map are the _Primoski_, near the delta of the Yukon.

The _Kwichluagmutes_ dwell upon the banks of the Kwichluak or Crooked

River, an arm of the Kwichpak. 'Die Kwichljuagmjuten an den Ufern eines

Mündungsarmes des Kwichpakh, der Kwichljuakh.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn.

Skiz._, p. 5. 'Inhabit the Kwikhpak Slough.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 407.

The _Pashtoliks_ dwell upon the river Pashtolik. 'Die Paschtoligmjuten,

an den Ufern des Pastolflusses.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6.

'Paschtoligmüten, am Flusse Paschtol.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 122.

Whymper places them immediately north of the delta of the Yukon.

The _Chnagmutes_ occupy the coast and islands south of the Unalaklik

River to Pashtolik Bay. 'Die Tschnagmjuten, an den Ufern der Meerbusen

Pastol und Schachtolik zwischen den Flüssen Pastol an Unalaklik.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6. 'Den Tschnagmüten, gegen Norden von den

Paschtuligmüten und gegen Westen bis zum Kap Rodney.' _Baer_, _Stat. u.

Ethn._, p. 122. 'Am. sdl. Norton-Busen.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek.

Sprache_, p. 805.

The _Anlygmutes_ inhabit the shores of Golovnin Bay and the southern

coast of the Kaviak peninsula. 'Die Anlygmjuten, an den Ufern der Bai

Golownin nördlich vom Nortonsunde.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6.

'Anlygmüten, an der Golowninschen Bai.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p.

122. 'Ndl. vom Norton-Sund.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_,

p. 722.

The _Kaviaks_ inhabit the western portion of the Kaviak peninsula.

'Adjacent to Port Clarence and Behring Strait.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p.

167. 'Between Kotzebue and Norton Sounds.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 137.

The _Malemutes_ inhabit the coast at the mouth of the Unalaklik River,

and northward along the shores of Norton Sound across the neck of the

Kaviak Peninsula at Kotzebue Sound. 'Die Maleigmjuten bewohnen die Küste

des Nortonsundes vom Flusse Unalaklik an und gehen durch das Innere des

Landes hinauf bis zum Kotzebuesunde.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6.

'From Norton Sound and Bay north of Shaktolik, and the neck of the

Kaviak Peninsula to Selawik Lake.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 407. 'Den

Malimüten, nahe an den Ufern des Golfes Schaktulack oder Schaktol.'

_Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 122. The Malemutes 'extend from the island

of St. Michael to Golovin Sound.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 167. 'Ndl. am

Norton-Busen bis zum Kotzebue Sund.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek.

Sprache_, p. 766.

[Sidenote: THE ALEUTS.]

THE ALEUTS inhabit the islands of the Aleutian archipelago, and part of

the peninsula of Alaska and the Island of Kadiak. They are divided into

the _Atkahs_, who inhabit the western islands, and the _Unalaskans_ or

eastern division. The tribal divisions inhabiting the various islands

are as follows; namely, on the Alaskan peninsula, three tribes to which

the Russians have given names--_Morshewskoje_, _Bjeljkowskoje_, and

_Pawlowskoje_; on the island of Unga, the _Ugnasiks_; on the island of

Unimak, the _Sesaguks_; the _Tigaldas_ on Tigalda Island; the

_Avatanaks_ on Avatanak Island; on the Island of Akun, three tribes,

which the Russians call _Arteljnowskoje_, _Rjätscheschnoje_, and

_Seredkinskoje_; the _Akutans_ on the Akutan Island; the _Unalgas_ on

the Unalga Island; the _Sidanaks_ on Spirkin Island; on the island of

Unalashka, the _Ililluluk_, the _Nguyuk_, and seven tribes called by the

Russians _Natykinskoje_, _Pestnjakow-swoje_, _Wesselowskoje_,

_Makuschinskoja_, _Koschhiginskoje_, _Tuscon-skoje_, and

_Kalechinskoje_; and on the island of Umnak the _Tuliks_. Latham,

_Nat. Races_, p. 291, assigns them to the Aleutian Isles. 'Die

Unalaschkaer oder Fuchs-Aleuten bewohnen die Gruppe der Fuchsinseln,

den südwestlichen Theil der Halbinsel Aljaska, und die Inselgruppe

Schumaginsk. Die Atchaer oder Andrejanowschen Aleuten bewohnen die

Andrejanowschen, die Ratten, und die Nahen-Inseln der Aleuten-Kette.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, pp. 7, 8. Inhabit 'the islands between Alyaska

and Kamschatka.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 4.

[Sidenote: THE THLINKEETS.]

THE THLINKEETS, or Kolosches, occupy the islands and shores between

Copper River and the river Nass. 'Die eigentlichen Thlinkithen (Bewohner

des Archipels von den Parallelen des Flusses Nass bis zum St.

Elias-berge).' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 4. 'The Kalosh Indians seen

at Sitka inhabit the coast between the Stekine and Chilcat Rivers.'

_Whymper's Alaska_, p. 100. 'Kaloches et Kiganis. Côtes et îles de

l'Amérique Russe.' _Mofras_, _Explor._, tom. ii., p. 335. The

'Koloshians live upon the islands and coast from the latitude 50° 40´ to

the mouth of the Atna or Copper River.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, p. 562.

'From about 60° to 45° N. Lat., reaching therefore across the Russian

frontier as far as the Columbia River.' _Müller's Chips_, vol. i., p.

334. 'At Sitka Bay and Norfolk Sound.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 96.

'Between Jacootat or Behring's Bay, to the 57th degree of north

latitude.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 242. 'Die Völker eines grossen Theils

der Nordwest-Küste von America.' _Vater_, _Mithridates_, vol. iii., pt.

iii., p. 218. 'Les Koliugi habitent le pays montueux du Nouveau-Norfolk,

et la partie septentrionale du Nouveau-Cornouaille.' _Humboldt_, _Pol._,

tom. i., p. 349.

The _Ugalenzes_ or Ugalukmutes, the northernmost Thlinkeet tribe,

inhabit the coast from both banks of the mouth of Copper River, nearly

to Mount St Elias. 'About Mount Elias.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 292.

Adjacent to Behring Bay. _Prichard's Researches_, vol. v., p. 370. 'Die

Ugalenzen, die im Winter eine Bucht des Festlandes, der kleinen Insel

Kajak gegenüber, bewohnen, zum Sommer aber ihre Wohnungsplätze an dem

rechten Ufer des Kupferflusses bei dessen Mündung aufschlagen.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 4. 'Das Vorgebirge St. Elias, kann als die

Gränzscheide der Wohnsitze der See-Koloschen gegen Nordwest angesehen

werden.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p. 96. 'Les Ugalachmiuti s'étendent

depuis le golfe du Prince Guillaume, jusqu'à la baie de Jakutat.'

_Humboldt_, _Pol._, tom. i., p. 348. 'Ugalenzen oder Ugaljachmjuten. An

der russ. Küste ndwstl. vom St. Elias Berg.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der

Aztek. Sprache_, p. 807. 'West of Cape St. Elias and near the island of

Kadjak.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 194.

The _Yakutats_ 'occupy the coast from Mount Fairweather to Mount St.

Elias.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 428. At 'Behring Bay.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._,

1869, p. 575.

The _Chilkat_ come next, and live on Lynn Canal and the Chilkat River.

'At Chilkaht Inlet.' 'At the head of Chatham Straits.' _Ind. Aff.

Rept._, 1869, pp. 535, 575. 'Am Lynn's-Canal, in russ. Nordamerika.'

_Buschmann_, _Spuren der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 736. 'On Lynn's Canal.'

_Schoolcraft's Archives_, vol. v., p. 489. A little to the northward of

the Stakine-Koan. _Dunn's Oregon_, p. 288.

The _Hoonids_ inhabit the eastern banks of Cross Sound. 'For a distance

of sixty miles.' 'At Cross Sound reside the Whinegas.' 'The Hunnas or

Hooneaks, who are scattered along the main land from Lynn Canal to Cape

Spencer.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, pp. 535, 562, 575. The Huna Cow tribe

is situated on Cross Sound. _Schoolcraft's Archives_, vol. v., p. 489.

The _Hoodsinoos_ 'live near the head of Chatham Strait.' 'On Admiralty

Island.' 'Rat tribes on Kyro and Kespriano Islands.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._,

1869, pp. 335, 562, 575. 'Hootsinoo at Hoodsinoo or Hood Bay.'

_Schoolcraft's Archives_, vol. v., p. 489. 'Hoodsunhoo at Hood Bay.'

_Gallatin_, in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 302.

'Hoodsunhoo at Hood Bay.' 'Eclikimo in Chatham's Strait.' _Ludewig_,

_Ab. Lang._, p. 175.

The _Takoos_ dwell 'at the head of Takoo Inlet on the Takoo River. The

Sundowns and Takos who live on the mainland from Port Houghton to the

Tako River.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, pp. 536, 562. Tako and Samdan,

Tako River. _Schoolcraft's Arch._, vol. v., p. 489.

The _Auks Indians_ are at the mouth of the Takoo River and on Admiralty

Island. 'North of entrance Tako River.' _Schoolcraft's Arch._, p. 489.

'The Ark and Kake on Prince Frederick's Sound.' _Am. Antiq. Soc.

Transact._, vol. ii., p. 302.

The _Kakas_ inhabit the shores of Frederick Sound and Kuprianoff Island.

'The Kakus, or Kakes, who live on Kuprinoff Island, having their

principal settlement near the northwestern side.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._,

1869, p. 562. 'The Ark and Kake on Prince Frederick's Sound.' _Am.

Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 302.

The _Sitkas_ occupy Baranoff Island. 'They are divided into tribes or

clans, of which one is called Coquontans.' _Buschmann_, _Pima Spr. u. d.

Spr. der Koloschen_, p. 377. 'The tribe of the Wolf are called

Coquontans.' _Lisiansky's Voy._, p. 242. 'The Sitka-Koan,' or the people

of Sitka. 'This includes the inhabitants of Sitka Bay, near New

Archangel, and the neighboring islands.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 412.

Simpson calls the people of Sitka 'Sitkaguouays.' _Overland Jour._, vol.

i., p. 226. 'The Sitkas or Indians on Baronoff Island.' _Ind. Aff.

Rept._, 1869, pp. 535, 562.

The _Stikeen Indians_ inhabit the country drained by the Stikeen River.

'Do not penetrate far into the interior.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 411. The

Stikein tribe 'live at the top of Clarence's Straits, which run upwards

of a hundred miles inland.' _Dunn's Oregon_, p. 288. 'At Stephens

Passage.' 'The Stikeens who live on the Stackine River and the islands

near its mouth.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, p. 562. 'Stikeen Indians,

Stikeen River, Sicknaahutty, Taeeteetan, Kaaskquatee, Kookatee,

Naaneeaaghee, Talquatee, Kicksatee, Kaadgettee.' _Schoolcraft's Arch._,

vol. v., p. 489. The Secatquonays occupy the main land about the mouths

of the Stikeen River, and also the neighboring islands. _Simpson's

Overland Jour._, vol. i., p. 210.

The _Tungass_, 'live on Tongas Island, and on the north side of Portland

Channel.' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, p. 562. Southern entrance Clarence

Strait. _Schoolcraft's Arch._, vol. v., p. 489. The Tongarses or Tun

Ghaase 'are a small tribe, inhabiting the S.E. corner of Prince of

Wales's Archipelago.' _Scouler_, in _Lond. Geog. Soc., Jour._, vol. xi.,

p. 218. 'Tungass, an der sdlst. russ. Küste.' _Buschmann_, _Spuren der

Aztek. Sprache_, p. 806. 'Tunghase Indians of the south-eastern part of

Prince of Wales's Archipelago.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 192. Tongas

Indians, lat. 54° 46´ N. and long. 130° 35´ W. _Dall's Alaska_, p. 251.

[Sidenote: THE TINNEH.]

THE TINNEH occupy the vast interior north of the fifty-fifth parallel,

and west from Hudson Bay, approaching the Arctic and Pacific Coasts to

within from fifty to one hundred and fifty miles: at Prince William

Sound, they even touch the seashore. Mackenzie, _Voy._, p. cxvii., gives

boundaries upon the basis of which Gallatin, _Am. Antiq. Soc.

Transact._, vol. ii., p. 9, draws a line from the Mississippi to within

one hundred miles of the Pacific at 52° 30´, and allots them the

northern interior to Eskimos lands. 'Extend across the continent.'

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 2. 'Von der nördlichen Hudsonsbai aus

fast die ganze Breite des Continents durchläuft--im Norden und

Nordwesten den 65ten Grad u. beinahe die Gestade des Polarmeers

erreicht.' _Buschmann_, _Athapask. Sprachst._, p. 313. The Athabascan

area touches Hudson's Bay on the one side, the Pacific on the other.'

_Latham's Comp. Phil._, p. 388. 'Occupies the whole of the northern

limits of North America, together with the Eskimos.' _Ludewig_, _Ab.

Lang._, p. 14.

The _Chipewyans_, or Athabascas proper, Mackenzie, _Voy._, p. cxvi.,

places between N. latitude 60° and 65°, and W. longitude 100° and 110°.

'Between the Athabasca and Great Slave Lakes and Churchill River.'

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., p. 241. 'Frequent the Elk and Slave Rivers,

and the country westward to Hay River.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii.,

p. 5. The Northern Indians occupy the territory immediately north of

Fort Churchill, on the Western shore of Hudson Bay. 'From the

fifty-ninth to the sixty-eighth degree of North latitude, and from East

to West is upward of five hundred miles wide.' _Hearne's Jour._, p. 326;

_Martin's Brit. Col._, vol. iii., p. 524.

The _Copper Indians_ occupy the territory on both sides of the

Coppermine River south of the Eskimo lands, which border on the ocean at

the mouth of the river. They are called by the Athabascas

_Tantsawhot-Dinneh_. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., 76; _Gallatin_, in

_Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 19.

The _Horn Mountain Indians_ 'inhabit the country betwixt Great Bear Lake

and the west end of Great Slave Lake.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p.

82.

The _Beaver Indians_ 'inhabit the lower part of Peace River.' _Harmon's

Jour._, p. 309. On Mackenzie's map they are situated between Slave and

Martin Lakes. 'Between the Peace River and the West branch of the

Mackenzie.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 6. Edchawtawhoot-dinneh,

Strong-bow, Beaver or Thick-wood Indians, who frequent the Rivière aux

Liards, or south branch of the Mackenzie River, _Franklin's Nar._, vol.

ii., p. 85.

The _Thlingcha-dinneh_, or Dog-ribs, 'inhabit the country to the

westward of the Copper Indians, as far as Mackenzie's River.'

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 80. _Gallatin_, in _Am. Antiq. Soc.

Transact._, vol. ii., p. 19. 'East from Martin Lake to the Coppermine

River.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 3. 'At Fort Confidence, north

of Great Bear Lake.' _Simpson's Nar._, p. 200. 'Between Martin's Lake

and the Coppermine River.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p. 66.

The _Kawcho-dinneh_, or Hare Indians, are 'immediately to the northward

of the Dog-ribs on the north side of Bear Lake River.' _Franklin's

Nar._, vol. ii., p. 83. They 'inhabit the banks of the Mackenzie, from

Slave Lake downwards.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 3. Between

Bear Lake and Fort Good Hope, _Simpson's Nar._, p. 98. On Mackenzie

River, below Great Slave Lake, extending towards the Great Bear Lake.

_Gallatin_, in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 19.

'To the eastward of the Dog-ribs are the Red-knives, named by their

southern neighbors, the _Tantsaut-'dtinnè_ (Birch-rind people). They

inhabit a stripe of country running northwards from Great Slave Lake,

and in breadth from the Great Fish River to the Coppermine.'

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 4.

The _Ambawtawhoot Tinneh_, or Sheep Indians, 'inhabit the Rocky

Mountains near the sources of the Dawhoot-dinneh River which flows into

Mackenzie's.' _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 84. Further down the

Mackenzie, near the 65° parallel. _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 7.

The _Sarsis_, _Circees_, _Ciriés_, _Sarsi_, _Sorsi_, _Sussees_,

_Sursees_, or _Surcis_, 'live near the Rocky Mountains between the

sources of the Athabasca and Saskatchewan Rivers; are said to be

likewise of the Tinné stock.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 6.

'Near the sources of one of the branches of the Saskachawan.' _Gallatin_,

in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._, vol. ii., p. 19.

The _Tsillawdawhoot Tinneh_, or Brush-wood Indians, inhabit the upper

branches of the Rivière aux Liards. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 87.

On the River aux Liards (Poplar River), _Gallatin_, in _Am. Antiq. Soc.

Transact._, vol. ii., p. 19.

The _Nagailer_, or Chin Indians, on Mackenzie's map, latitude 52° 30´

longitude 122° to 125°, 'inhabit the country about 52° 30´ N. L. to the

southward of the Takalli, and thence extend south along Fraser's River

towards the Straits of Fuca.' _Prichard's Researches_, vol. v., p. 427.

The _Slouacuss Tinneh_ on Mackenzie's are next north-west from the

Nagailer. Vater places them at 52° 4´. 'Noch näher der Küste um den 52°

4´ wohnten die Slua-cuss-dinais d. i. Rothfisch-Männer.' _Vater_,

_Mithridates_, vol. iii., pt. iii., p. 421. On the upper part of Frazers

River. _Cox's Adven._, p. 323.

The _Rocky Mountain Indians_ are a small tribe situated to the

south-west of the Sheep Indians. _Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 85. 'On

the Unjigah or Peace River.' _Gallatin_, in _Am. Antiq. Soc. Transact._,

vol. ii., p. 19. On the upper tributaries of Peace River. _Mackenzie's

Voy._, p. 163.

The _Tacullies_, or Carriers, inhabit New Caledonia from latitude 52°

30´ to latitude 56°. 'A general name given to the native tribes of

New-Caledonia.' _Morse's Report_, p. 371. 'All the natives of the Upper

Fraser are called by the Hudson Bay Company, and indeed generally,

"Porteurs," or Carriers.' _Mayne's B. C._, p. 298. 'Tokalis, Le Nord de

la Nouvelle Calédonie.' _Mofras, Explor._, tom. ii., p. 335. 'Northern

part of New Caledonia.' _Pickering's Races_, in _U. S. Ex. Ex._, vol.

ix., p. 33. 'On the sources of Fraser's River.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._,

p. 178. 'Unter den Völkern des Tinné-Stammes, welche das Land westlich

von den Rocky Mountains bewohnen, nehmen die Takuli (Wasservolk) oder

Carriers den grössten Theil von Neu-Caledonien ein.' _Buschmann_,

_Athapask. Sprachst._, p. 152. 'Greater part of New Caledonia.'

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 31. 'Latitude of Queen Charlotte's

Island.' _Prichard's Researches_, vol. v., p. 427. 'From latitude 52°

30´, where it borders on the country of the Shoushaps, to latitude 56°,

including Simpson's River.' _Hale's Ethnog._, in _U. S. Ex. Ex._, vol.

vi., p. 202. 'South of the Sicannis and Straits Lake.' _Harmon's Jour._,

p. 196. They 'are divided into eleven clans, or minor tribes, whose

names are--beginning at the south--as follows: the Tautin, or Talkotin;

the Tsilkotin or Chilcotin; the Naskotin; the Thetliotin; the

Tsatsnotin; the Nulaautin; the Ntshaautin; the Natliautin; the

Nikozliautin; the Tatshiautin; and the Babine Indians.' _Hale's

Ethnog._, in _U. S. Ex. Ex._, vol. vi., p. 202. 'The principal tribes in

the country north of the Columbia regions, are the Chilcotins and the

Talcotins.' _Greenhow's Hist. Ogn._, p. 30. The Talcotins 'occupy the

territory above Fort Alexandria on Frazer River.' _Hazlitt's B. C._, p.

79. 'Spend much of their time at Bellhoula, in the Bentinck Inlet.'

_Mayne's B. C._, p. 299. The Calkobins 'inhabit New Caledonia, west of

the mountains.' _De Smet's Letters and Sketches_, p. 157. The

Nateotetains inhabit the country lying directly west from Stuart Lake on

either bank of the Nateotetain River. _Harmon's Jour._, p. 218. The

Naskootains lie along Frazer River from Frazer Lake. _Id._, p. 245.

The _Sicannis_ dwell in the Rocky Mountains between the Beaver Indians

on the east, and the Tacullies and Atnas on the west and south. _Id._,

p. 190. They live east of the Tacullies in the Rocky Mountain. _Hale's

Ethnog._, in _U. S. Ex. Ex._, vol. vi., p. 202. 'On the Rocky Mountains

near the Rapid Indians and West of them.' _Morse's Report_, p. 371.

The _Kutchins_ are a large nation, extending from the Mackenzie River

westward along the Yukon Valley to near the mouth of the river, with the

Eskimos on one side and the Koltshanes on the other. Buschmann, _Spuren

der Aztek. Sprache_, p. 713, places them on the sixty-fifth parallel of

latitude, and from 130° to 150° of longitude west from Greenwich. 'Das

Volk wohnt am Flusse Yukon oder Kwichpak und über ihm; es dehnt sich

nach Richardson's Karte auf dem 65ten Parallelkreise aus vom 130-150° W.

L. v. Gr., und gehört daher zur Hälfte dem britischen und zur Hälfte dem

russischen Nordamerika an.' They are located 'immediately to the

northward of the Hare Indians on both banks of Mackenzie's River.'

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 83. Gallatin, _Am. Antiq. Soc.

Transact._, vol. ii., p. 83, places their northern boundary in latitude

67° 27´. To the west of the Mackenzie the Loucheux interpose between the

Esquimaux 'and the Tinné, and spread westward until they come into the

neighborhood of the coast tribes of Beering's Sea.' _Richardson's

Jour._, vol. i., p. 377. 'The Kutchin may be said to inhabit the

territory extending from the Mackenzie, at the mouth of Peel's River,

lat. 68°, long. 134°, to Norton's sound, living principally upon the

banks of the Youcon and Porcupine Rivers, though several of the tribes

are situated far inland, many days' journey from either river.' _Jones_,

in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1866, p. 320. 'They commence somewhere about the

65th degree of north latitude, and stretch westward from the Mackenzie

to Behring's straits.' 'They are divided into many petty tribes, each

having its own chief, as the Tatlit-Kutchin (Peel River Indians),

Ta-Kuth-Kutchin (Lapiene's House Indians), Kutch-a-Kutchin (Youcan

Indians), Touchon-ta-Kutchin (Wooded-country Indians), and many others.'

_Kirby_, in _Smithsonian Rept._, 1864, pp. 417, 418.

The Degothi-Kutchin, or Loucheux, Quarrellers, inhabit the west bank of

the Mackenzie between the Hare Indians and Eskimos. The Loucheux are on

the Mackenzie between the Arctic circle and the sea. _Simpson's Nar._,

p. 103.

The Vanta-Kutchin occupy 'the banks of the Porcupine, and the country to

the north of it.' 'Vanta-kutshi (people of the lakes), I only find that

they belong to the Porcupine River.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 294. They

'inhabit the territory north of the head-waters of the Porcupine,

somewhat below Lapierre's House.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 430.

The Natche-Kutchin, or Gens de Large, dwell to the 'north of the

Porcupine River.' 'These extend on the north bank to the mouth of the

Porcupine.' _Dall's Alaska_, pp. 109, 430.

'Neyetse-Kutshi, (people of the open country), I only find that they

belong to the Porcupine river.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 294. Whymper's

map calls them Rat Indians.

'The Na-tsik-Kut-chin inhabit the high ridge of land between the Yukon

and the Arctic Sea.' _Hardisty_, in _Dall's Alaska_, p. 197.

The Kukuth-Kutchin 'occupy the country south of the head-waters of the

Porcupine.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 430.

The Tutchone Kutchin, Gens de Foux, or crow people, dwell upon both

sides of the Yukon about Fort Selkirk, above the Han Kutchin. _Id._, pp.

109, 429.

'Tathzey-Kutshi, or people of the ramparts, the Gens du Fou of the

French Canadians, are spread from the upper parts of the Peel and

Porcupine Rivers, within the British territory, to the river of the

Mountain-men, in the Russian. The upper Yukon is therefore their

occupancy. They fall into four bands: _a_, the Tratsè-kutshi, or people

of the fork of the river; _b_, the Kutsha-kutshi; _c_, the Zèkà-thaka

(Ziunka-kutshi), people on this side, (or middle people); and, _d_, the

Tanna-kutshi, or people of the bluffs.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 293.

The Han-Kutchin, An-Kutchin Gens de Bois, or wood people, inhabit the

Yukon above Porcupine River. _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 254. They are found

on the Yukon next below the Crows, and above Fort Yukon. _Dall's

Alaska_, p. 109. 'Han-Kutchi residing at the sources of the Yukon.'

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 396.

'The Artez-Kutshi, or the tough (hard) people. The sixty-second parallel

cuts through their country; so that they lie between the head-waters of

the Yukon and the Pacific.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 293. See also

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 397.

The Kutcha-Kutchins, or Kot-à-Kutchin, 'are found in the country near

the junction of the Porcupine and the Yukon.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 431.

The Tenan-Kutchin, or Tananahs, Gens de Buttes, or people of the

mountains, occupy an unexplored domain south-west of Fort Yukon. Their

country is drained by the Tananah River. _Dall's Alaska_, p. 108. They

are placed on Whymper's map about twenty miles south of the Yukon, in

longitude 151° west from Greenwich. On Whymper's map are placed: the

Birch Indians, or Gens de Bouleau on the south bank of the Yukon at its

junction with Porcupine River; the Gens de Milieu, on the north bank of

the Yukon, in longitude 150°; the Nuclukayettes on both banks in

longitude 152°; and the Newicarguts, on the south bank between longitude

153° and 155°.

The _Kenais_ occupy the peninsula of Kenai and the surrounding country.

_Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, p. 562. 'An den Ufern und den Umgebungen von

Cook's Inlet und um die Seen Iliamna und Kisshick.' _Baer_, _Stat. u.

Ethn._, p. 103.

The Unakatana Yunakakhotanas, live 'on the Yukon between Koyukuk and

Nuklukahyet.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 53.

'Junakachotana, ein Stamm, welcher auf dem Flusse Jun-a-ka wohnt.'

_Sagoskin_, in _Denkschr. der russ. geo. Gesell._, p. 324. 'Die

Junnakachotana, am Flusse Jukchana oder Junna (so wird der obere Lauf

des Kwichpakh genannt) zwischen den Nebenflüssen Nulato und Junnaka, so

wie am untern Laufe des letztgenannten Flusses.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn.

Skiz._, p. 6.

'Die Junnachotana bewohnen den obern Lauf des Jukchana oder Junna von

der Mündung des Junnaka.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6.

'Die Jugelnuten haben ihre Ansiedelungen am Kwichpakh, am Tschageljuk

und an der Mündung des Innoka. Die Inkalichljuaten, am obern Laufe des

Innoka. Die Thljegonchotana am Flusse Thljegon, der nach der

Vereinigung mit dem Tatschegno den Innoka bildet.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn.

Skiz._, pp. 6, 7. 'They extend virtually from the confluence of the

Co-Yukuk River to Nuchukayette at the junction of the Tanana with the

Yukon.' 'They also inhabit the banks of the Co-yukuk and other

interior rivers.' _Whymper's Alaska_, p. 204.

The _Ingaliks_ inhabit the Yukon from Nulato south to below the Anvic

River. See _Whymper's Map_. 'The tribe extends from the edge of the

wooded district near the sea to and across the Yukon below Nulato, on

the Yukon and its affluents to the head of the delta, and across the

portage to the Kuskoquim River and its branches.' _Dall's Alaska_, p.

28. 'Die Inkiliken, am untern Laufe des Junna südlich von Nulato.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 6. 'An dem ganzen Ittege wohnt der Stamm der

Inkiliken, welcher zu dem Volk der Ttynai gehört.' _Sagoskin_, in

_Denkschr. der russ. geo. Gesell._, p. 341. 'An den Flüssen Kwichpack,

Kuskokwim und anderen ihnen zuströmenden Flüssen.' _Baer_, _Stat. u.

Ethn._, p. 120. 'The Ingaliks living on the north side of the Yukon

between it and the Kaiyuh Mountains (known as Takaitsky to the

Russians), bear the name of Kaiyuhkatana or "lowland people," and the

other branches of Ingaliks have similar names, while preserving their

general tribal name.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 53. On Whymper's map they are

called T'kitskes and are situated east of the Yukon in latitude 64°

north.

The _Koltschanes_ occupy the territory inland between the sources of the

Kuskoquim and Copper Rivers. 'They extend as far inland as the watershed

between the Copper-river and the Yukon.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 292.

'Die Galzanen oder Koltschanen (d. h. Fremdlinge, in der Sprache der

Athnaer) bewohnen das Innere des Landes zwischen den Quellflüssen des

Kuskokwim bis zu den nördlichen Zuflüssen des Athna oder Kupferstromes.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 7. 'Diejenigen Stämme, welche die nördlichen

und östlichen, dem Atna zuströmenden Flüsse und Flüsschen bewohnen, eben

so die noch weiter, jenseits der Gebirge lebenden, werden von den

Atnaern Koltschanen, d. h. Fremdlinge, genannt.' _Baer_, _Stat. u.

Ethn._, p. 101. 'North of the river Atna.' _Ludewig_, _Ab. Lang._, p.

96.

The Nehannes occupy the territory midway between Mount St. Elias and the

Mackenzie River, from Fort Selkirk and the Stakine River. 'According to

Mr. Isbister, range the country between the Russian settlements on the

Stikine River and the Rocky Mountains.' _Latham's Nat. Races_, p. 295.

The Nohhannies live 'upon the upper branches of the Rivière aux Liards.'

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. ii., p. 87. They 'inhabit the angle between that

branch and the great bend of the trunk of the river, and are neighbours

of the Beaver Indians.' _Richardson's Jour._, vol. ii., p. 6. The region

which includes the Lewis, or Tahco, and Pelly Rivers, with the valley of

the Chilkaht River, is occupied by tribes known to the Hudson Bay

voyageurs as Nehannees. Those on the Pelly and Macmillan rivers call

themselves Affats-tena. Some of them near Liard's River call themselves

Daho-tena or Acheto-tena, and others are called Sicannees by the

voyageurs. Those near Francis Lake are known as Mauvais Monde, or Slavé

Indians. About Fort Selkirk they have been called Gens des Foux.

The _Kenai_ proper, or Kenai-tena, or Thnaina, inhabit the peninsula of

Kenai, the shores of Cook Inlet, and thence westerly across the Chigmit

Mountains, nearly to the Kuskoquim River. They 'inhabit the country near

Cook's Inlet, and both shores of the Inlet as far south as Chugachik

Bay.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 430. 'Die eigentlichen Thnaina bewohnen die

Halbinsel Kenai und ziehen sich von da westlich über das

Tschigmit-Gebirge zum Mantaschtano oder Tchalchukh, einem südlichen

Nebenflusse des Kuskokwim.' _Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 7. 'Dieses--an

den Ufern und den Umgebungen von Cook's Inlet und um die Seen Iliamna

und Kisshick lebende Volk gehört zu dem selben Stamme wie die Galzanen

oder Koltschanen, Atnaer, und Koloschen.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._, p.

103. 'Les _Kenayzi_ habitent la côte occidentale de l'entrée de Cook ou

du golfe Kenayskaja.' _Humboldt_, _Pol._, tom. i., p. 348. 'The Indians

of Cook's Inlet and adjacent waters are called "Kanisky." They are

settled along the shore of the inlet and on the east shore of the

peninsula.' 'East of Cook's Inlet, in Prince William's Sound, there are

but few Indians, they are called "Nuchusk."' _Ind. Aff. Rept._, 1869, p.

575.

The _Atnas_ occupy the Atna or Copper River from near its mouth to near

its source. 'At the mouth of the Copper River.' _Latham's Comp. Phil._,

vol. viii., p. 392. 'Die Athnaer, am Athna oder Kupferflusse.'

_Holmberg_, _Ethn. Skiz._, p. 7. 'On the upper part of the Atna or Copper

River are a little-known tribe of the above name [viz., Ah-tena]. They

have been called Atnaer and Kolshina by the Russians, and Yellow Knife

or Nehaunee by the English.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 429. 'Diese kleine,

jetzt ungefähr aus 60 Familien bestehende, Völkerschaft wohnt an den

Ufern des Flusses Atna und nennt sich Atnaer.' _Baer_, _Stat. u. Ethn._,

p. 97.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Of late, custom gives to the main land of Russian America, the

name _Alaska_; to the peninsula, _Aliaska_; and to a large island of the

Aleutian Archipelago, _Unalashka_. The word of which the present name

Alaska is a corruption, is first encountered in the narrative of

Betsevin, who, in 1761, wintered on the peninsula, supposing it to be

an island. The author of _Neue Nachrichten von denen neuentdekten

Insuln_, writes, page 53, 'womit man nach der abgelegensten Insul

_Aläksu_ oder _Alachschak_ über gieng.' Again, at page 57, in giving a

description of the animals on the supposed island he calls it 'auf der

Insul _Aläsku_.' 'This,' says Coxe, _Russian Discoveries_, p. 72, 'is

probably the same island which is laid down in Krenitzin's chart under

the name of _Alaxa_.' _Unalaschka_ is given by the author of _Neue

Nachrichten_, p. 74, in his narrative of the voyage of Drusinin, who

hunted on that island in 1763. At page 115 he again mentions the

'grosse Insul _Aläksu_.' On page 125, in Glottoff's log-book, 1764, is

the entry: 'Den 28sten May der Wind Ostsüdost; man kam an die Insul

_Alaska_ oder _Aläksu_.' Still following the author of _Neue

Nachrichten_, we have on page 166, in an account of the voyages of

Otseredin and Popoff, who hunted upon the Aleutian Islands in 1769,

mention of a report by the natives 'that beyond Unimak is said to be a

large land _Aläschka_, the extent of which the islanders do not know.'

On Cook's Atlas, voyage 1778, the peninsula is called _Alaska_, and

the island _Oonalaska_, La Pérouse, in his atlas, map No. 15, 1786,

calls the peninsula _Alaska_, and the island _Ounalaska_. The

Spaniards, in the _Atlas para el Viage de las goletas Sutil y

Mexicana_, 1792, write _Alasca_ for the peninsula, and for the island

_Unalaska_. Sauer, in his account of Billings' expedition, 1790, calls

the main land _Alaska_, the peninsula _Alyaska_, and the island

_Oonalashka_. Wrangell, in _Baer's Statistische und ethnographische

Nachrichten_, p. 123, writes for the peninsula _Alaska_ and for the

island _Unalaschka_. Holmberg, _Ethnographische Skizzen_, p. 78, calls

the island _Unalaschka_ and the peninsula _Aljaska_. Dall, _Alaska_,

p. 529, says that the peninsula or main land was called by the natives

_Alayeksa_, and the island _Nagun-alayeksa_, 'or the land near

Alayeksa.' Thus we have, from which to choose, the orthography of the

earliest voyagers to this coast--Russian, English, French, Spanish,

German, and American. The simple word _Alaksu_, after undergoing many

contortions, some authors writing it differently on different pages of

the same book, has at length become _Alaska_, as applied to the main

land; _Aliaska_ for the peninsula, and _Unalashka_ as the name of the

island. As these names are all corruptions from some one original

word, whatever that may be, I see no reason for giving the error three

different forms. I therefore write Alaska for the mainland and

peninsula and Unalaska for the island.

[2] The name is said, by Charlevoix 'to be derived from the language of

the Abenaqui, a tribe of Algonquins in Canada, who border upon them and

call them "Esquimantsic."' 'L'origine de leur nom n'est pas certain.

Toutefois il y a bien de l'apparence qu'il vient du mot Abenaqui,

_esquimantsic_ qui veut dire "mangeur de viande cruë."' See _Prichard's

Physical History of Mankind_, vol. v., pp. 367, 373. 'French writers

call them Eskimaux.' 'English authors, in adopting this term, have most

generally written it "Esquimaux," but Dr. Latham, and other recent

ethnologists, write it "Eskimos," after the Danish orthography.'

_Richardson's Polar Regions_, p. 298. 'Probably of Canadian origin, and

the word, which in French orthography is written Esquimaux, was probably

originally _Ceux qui miaux_ (_miaulent_).' _Richardson's Journal_, vol.

i., p. 340. 'Said to be a corruption of _Eskimantik_, _i. e._

raw-fish-eaters, a nickname given them by their former neighbors, the

Mohicans.' _Seemann's Voyage of the Herald_, vol. ii., p. 49. Eskimo is

derived from a word indicating sorcerer or Shamán. 'The northern Tinneh

use the word _Uskeemi_.' _Dall's Alaska_, pp. 144, 531. 'Their own

national designation is "Keralit."' _Morton's Crania Americana_, p. 52.

They 'call themselves "Innuit," which signifies "man."' _Armstrong's

Narrative_, p. 191.

[3] It is not without reluctance that I change a word from the commonly

accepted orthography. Names of places, though originating in error, when

once established, it is better to leave unchanged. Indian names, coming

to us through Russian, German, French, or Spanish writers, should be

presented in English by such letters as will best produce the original

Indian pronunciation. European personal names, however, no matter how

long, nor how commonly they may have been erroneously used, should be

immediately corrected. Every man who can spell is supposed to be able to

give the correct orthography of his own name, and his spelling should in

every instance be followed, when it can be ascertained. Veit Bering,

anglicè Vitus Behring, was of a Danish family, several members of which

were well known in literature before his own time. In Danish writings,

as well as among the biographies of Russian admirals, where may be found

a fac-simile of his autograph, the name is spelled _Bering_. It is so

given by Humboldt, and by the _Dictionnaire de la Conversation_. The

author of the _Neue Nachrichten von denen neuentdekten Insuln_, one of

the oldest printed works on Russian discoveries in America; as well as

Müller, who was the companion of Bering for many years; and

Buschmann,--all write _Bering_. Baer remarks: 'Ich schreibe ferner

Bering, obgleich es jetzt fast allgemein geworden ist, Behring zu

schreiben, und auch die Engländer und Franzosen sich der letztern

Schreibart bequemt haben. Bering war ein Däne und seine Familie war

lange vor ihm in der Literatur-Geschichte bekannt. Sie hat ihren Namen

auf die von mir angenommene Weise drucken lassen. Derselben Schreibart

bediente sich auch der Historiograph Müller, der längere Zeit unter

seinen Befehlen gedient hatte, und Pallas.' _Statistische und

ethnographische Nachrichten_, p. 328. There is no doubt that the famous

navigator wrote his name _Bering_, and that the letter 'h' was

subsequently inserted to give the Danish sound to the letter 'e.' To

accomplish the same purpose, perhaps, Coxe, Langsdorff, Beechey, and

others write _Beering_.

[4] 'Die Kadjacker im Gegentheil nähern sich mehr den Amerikanischen

Stämmen und gleichen in ihrem Aeussern gar nicht den Eskimos oder den

Asiatischen Völkern, wahrscheinlich haben sie durch die Vermischung mit

den Stämmen Amerika's ihre ursprüngliche Asiatische äussere Gestalt und

Gesichtsbildung verloren und nur die Sprache beibehalten.' _Baer_,

_Stat. u. Ethn. Nachr._, p. 124. 'Ils ressemblent beaucoup aux indigènes

des îles Curiles, dépendantes du Japon.' _Laplace_, _Circumnavigation de

l'Artémise_, vol. vi., p. 45.

[5] 'The tribes crowded together on the shores of Beering's Sea within a

comparatively small extent of coast-line, exhibit a greater variety,

both in personal appearance and dialect, than that which exists between

the Western Eskimos and their distant countrymen in Labrador; and

ethnologists have found some difficulty in classifying them properly.'

_Richardson's Jour._, vol. i., p. 363.

[6] For authorities, see TRIBAL BOUNDARIES, at the end of this chapter.

[7] _Collinson_, in _London Geographical Society Journal_, vol. xxv., p.

201.

[8] 'Im nordwestlichsten Theile von Amerika fand Franklin den Boden,

Mitte August, schon in einer Tiefe von 16 Zoll gefroren. Richardson sah

an einem östlicheren Punkte der Küste, in 71° 12´ Breite, die Eisschicht

im Julius aufgethaut bis 3 Fuss unter der krautbedeckten Oberfläche.'

_Humboldt_, _Kosmos_, tom. iv., p. 47.

[9] _Silliman's Journal_, vol. xvi., p. 130. _Seemann's Voy. Herald_,

vol. ii., p. 13. _Armstrong's Nar._, p. 289.

[10] 'Characteristic of the Arctic regions.' _Silliman's Jour._, vol.

xvi., p. 143.

[11] At Kotzebue Sound, in July, Choris writes: 'Le sol était émaillé de

fleurs de couleurs variées, dans tous les endroits où la neige venait de

fondre.' _Voyage Pittoresque_, pt. ii., p. 8.

[12] 'In der Einöde der Inseln von Neu-Sibirien finden grosse Heerden

von Rennthieren und zahllose Lemminge noch hinlängliche Nahrung.'

_Humboldt_, _Kosmos_, vol. iv., p. 42.

[13] 'Thermometer rises as high as 61° Fahr. With a sun shining

throughout the twenty-four hours the growth of plants is rapid in the

extreme.' _Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 15.

[14] 'During the period of incubation of the aquatic birds, every hole

and projecting crag on the sides of this rock is occupied by them. Its

shores resound with the chorus of thousands of the feathery tribe.'

_Beechey's Voy._, vol. i., p. 349.

[15] 'Their complexion, if divested of its usual covering of dirt, can

hardly be called dark.' _Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 51. 'In

comparison with other Americans, of a white complexion.' _McCulloh's

Aboriginal History of America_, p. 20. 'White Complexion, not Copper

coloured.' _Dobbs' Hudson's Bay_, p. 50. 'Almost as white as Europeans.'

_Kalm's Travels_, vol. ii., p. 263. 'Not darker than that of a

Portuguese.' _Lyon's Journal_, p. 224. 'Scarcely a shade darker than a

deep brunette.' _Parry's 3rd Voyage_, p. 493. 'Their complexion is

light.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 381. 'Eye-witnesses agree in their superior

lightness of complexion over the Chinooks.' _Pickering's Races of Man_,

_U. S. Ex. Ex._, vol. ix., p. 28. At Coppermine River they are 'of a

dirty copper color; some of the women, however, are more fair and

ruddy.' _Hearne's Travels_, p. 166. 'Considerably fairer than the Indian

tribes.' _Simpson's Nar._, p. 110. At Cape Bathurst 'The complexion is

swarthy, chiefly, I think, from exposure and the accumulation of dirt.'

_Armstrong's Nar._, p. 192. 'Shew little of the copper-colour of the Red

Indians.' _Richardson's Pol. Reg._, p. 303. 'From exposure to weather

they become dark after manhood.' _Richardson's Nar._, vol. i., p. 343.

[16] 'Both sexes are well proportioned, stout, muscular, and active.'

_Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 50. 'A stout, well-looking

people.' _Simpson's Nar._, pp. 110, 114. 'Below the mean of the

Caucasian race.' _Dr. Hayes_, in _Historic. Magazine_, vol. i., p. 6.

'They are thick set, have a decided tendency to obesity, and are seldom

more than five feet in height.' _Figuier's Human Race_, p. 211. At

Kotzebue Sound, 'tallest man was five feet nine inches; tallest woman,

five feet four inches.' _Beechey's Voy._, vol. i., p. 360. 'Average

height was five feet four and a half inches.' At the mouth of the

Mackenzie they are of 'middle stature, strong and muscular.'

_Armstrong's Nar._, pp. 149, 192. 'Low, broad-set, not well made, nor

strong.' _Hearne's Trav._, p. 166. 'The men were in general stout.'

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., p. 29. 'Of a middle size, robust make, and

healthy appearance.' _Kotzebue's Voy._, vol. i., p. 209. 'Men vary in

height from about five feet to five feet ten inches.' _Richardson's Pol.

Reg._, p. 304. 'Women were generally short.' 'Their figure inclines to

squat.' _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 224.

[17] 'Tous les individus qui appartiennent à la famille des Eskimaux, se

distinguent par la petitesse de leurs pieds et de leurs mains, et la

grosseur énorme de leurs têtes.' _De Pauw_, _Recherches Phil._, tom. i.,

p. 262. 'The hands and feet are delicately small and well formed.'

_Richardson's Pol. Reg._, p. 304. 'Small and beautifully made.'

_Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 50. At Point Barrow, 'their hands,

notwithstanding the great amount of manual labour to which they are

subject, were beautifully small and well-formed, a description equally

applicable to their feet.' _Armstrong's Nar._, p. 101.

[18] 'The head is of good size, rather flat superiorly, but very fully

developed posteriorly, evidencing a preponderance of the animal

passions; the forehead was, for the most part, low and receding; in a

few it was somewhat vertical, but narrow.' _Armstrong's Nar._, p. 193.

Their cranial characteristics 'are the strongly developed coronary

ridge, the obliquity of the zygoma, and its greater capacity compared

with the Indian cranium. The former is essentially pyramidal, while the

latter more nearly approaches a cubic shape.' _Dall's Alaska_, p. 376.

'Greatest breadth of the face is just below the eyes, the forehead

tapers upwards, ending narrowly, but not acutely, and in like manner the

chin is a blunt cone.' _Richardson's Pol. Reg._, p. 302. Dr Gall, whose

observations on the same skulls presented him for phrenological

observation are published by M. Louis Choris, thus comments upon the

head of a female Eskimo from Kotzebue Sound: 'L'organe de l'instinct de

la propagation se trouve extrêmement développé pour une tête de femme.'

He finds the musical and intellectual organs poorly developed; while

vanity and love of children are well displayed. 'En général,' sagely

concluded the doctor, 'cette tête femme présentait une organization

aussi heureuse que celle de la plupart des femmes d'Europe.' _Voy.

Pitt._, pt. ii., p. 16.

[19] 'Large fat round faces, high cheek bones, small hazel eyes,

eyebrows slanting like the Chinese, and wide mouths.' _Beechey's Voy._,

vol. i., p. 345. 'Broad, flat faces, high cheekbones.' _Dr Hayes_, in

_Hist. Mag._, vol. i., p. 6. Their 'teeth are regular, but, from the

nature of their food, and from their practice of preparing hides by

chewing, are worn down almost to the gums at an early age.' _Seemann's

Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 51. At Hudson Strait, broad, flat, pleasing

face; small and generally sore eyes; given to bleeding at the nose.

_Franklin's Nar._, vol. i., p. 29. 'Small eyes and very high cheek

bones.' _Kotzebue's Voy._, vol. i., p. 209. 'La face platte, la bouche

ronde, le nez petit sans être écrasé, le blanc de l'oeil jaunâtre,

l'iris noir et peu brillant.' _De Pauw_, _Recherches Phil._, tom. i., p.

262. They have 'small, wild-looking eyes, large and very foul teeth, the

hair generally black, but sometimes fair, and always in extreme

disorder.' _Brownell's Ind. Races_, p. 467. 'As contrasted with the

other native American races, their eyes are remarkable, being narrow and

more or less oblique.' _Richardson's Nar._, vol. i., p. 343. Expression

of face intelligent and good-natured. Both sexes have mostly round, flat

faces, with Mongolian cast. _Hooper's Tuski_, p. 223.

[20] 'Allowed to hang down in a club to the shoulder.' _Richardson's

Pol. Reg._, p. 305. Hair cut 'close round the crown of the head, and

thereby, leaving a bushy ring round the lower part of it.' _Beechey's

Voy._, vol. i., p. 345. 'Their hair is straight, black, and coarse.'

_Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol. ii., p. 51. A fierce expression

characterized them on the Mackenzie River, which 'was increased by the

long disheveled hair flowing about their shoulders.' _Armstrong's Nar._,

p. 149. At Kotzebue Sound 'their hair was done up in large plaits on

each side of the head.' _Beechey's Voy._, vol. i., p. 360. At Camden Bay,

lofty top-knots; at Point Barrow, none. At Coppermine River the hair is

worn short, unshaven on the crown, and bound with strips of deer-skin.

_Simpson's Nar._, pp. 121, 157. Some of the men have bare crowns, but

the majority wear the hair flowing naturally. The women cut the hair

short in front, level with the eyebrows. At Humphrey Point it is twisted

with some false hair into two immense bows on the back of the head.

_Hooper's Tuski_, p. 225. 'Their hair hangs down long, but is cut quite

short on the crown of the head.' _Kotzebue's Voy._, vol. i., p. 210.

Hair cut like 'that of a Capuchin friar.' _Seemann's Voy. Herald_, vol.

ii., p. 51.