“Jack-at-all-trades and good at some” was the pleasant way in which Dr.
Philip Schaff put it, when some of the students in the Theological
Seminary at Hartford, Connecticut, had done up some furniture for him,
to send to New Haven. I have often been reminded of this, as I have had,
at times, to take up a variety of work. Missionaries among the Indians
have to be the first part of the sentence and console themselves with
the hope that the latter part may sometimes prove true.
On one tour among the Clallams, I find the following: When three miles
from home, the first duty was to stop and attend the funeral of a white
man. Forty-five miles on, the evening of the next day until late at
night, was spent in assisting one of the government employees in holding
court over four Indians, who had been drunk; a fifth had escaped to
British Columbia and was safe from trial. This kind of business
occasionally comes in as an aid to the agent. I seldom have any thing
to do with it on the reservation, as the agent can attend to it; but
when off from the reservation, where neither of us can be more than once
in six months or thereabouts it sometimes saves him much trouble and
expense, and seems to do as much good as a sermon. It is of but little
use to preach to drunken Indians, and a little law sometimes helps the
gospel. The agent reciprocates by talking gospel to them on the Sabbath
on his trips.
On reaching Jamestown, the afternoon was spent in introducing an Indian
from British Columbia, who had taken me there in his canoe, to the
Clallam Indians and the school; and in comforting two parents, Christian
Indians, whose youngest child lay at the point of death. The next day
she died, and, as no minister had ever been among these Indians at any
previous funeral, they needed some instruction. So it was my duty to
assist in digging the grave and making the coffin, comfort them, and
attend the funeral in a snow-storm.
The Sabbath was spent in holding two services with them, one of them
being mainly a service of song; and, as there was a part of the day
unoccupied, at the request of the whites near by I gave them a sermon.
The next day I found that “Blue Monday” must be adjourned. Years ago the
Indians purchased their land, but owing to a mistake of the surveyor, it
was necessary that the deeds should be made out again. So, in order to
get all the Indians together who were needed, with the proper officer, I
walked fourteen miles, rode six in a canoe, and then, after half-past
three o’clock, saw that nineteen deeds were properly signed, which
required sixty-two signatures, besides the witnessing, acknowledging,
and filing of them, which required seventy-six more signatures. The plat
of their town--Jamestown--was also filed and recorded. When this was
done, I assisted the Indians to obtain two marriage-licenses, after
which we went to the church, where I addressed them on two different
subjects, and then the two weddings took place, and by nine o’clock we
were done.
The monotony of the next day was varied by a visit to the school;
helping the chief to select a burying-ground (for their dead had been
buried in various places); a walk of ten miles and a wedding of a white
couple, who have been very kind to me in my work there, one of them
being a member of the Jamestown church.
On my way home, while waiting for the steamers to connect at Port
Gamble, I took a trip of about fifty miles, to Port Madison and back, to
help in finishing the Indian census of 1880 for General F. A. Walker and
Major J. W. Powell; and then on my way home, by the kindness of the
captain of the steamer, who waited half an hour for me, I was able to
assist the chief in capturing and taking to the reservation the fifth
Indian at Port Gamble who had been drunk, and had, by that time,
returned from the British side.
The variety of another trip in 1878 is thus recorded: As to food, I have
done my own cooking, eaten dry crackers only for meals, been boarded
several days for nothing, and bought meals. As to sleeping, I have
stayed in as good a bed as could be given me for nothing, and slept in
my own blankets in an Indian canoe, because the houses of the whites
were too far away and the fleas were too thick in the Indian houses.
They were bad enough in the canoe, but the Indians would not allow me to
go farther away, for fear that the panthers would catch me. As to work,
I have preached, held prayer-meetings, done pastoral work, helped clean
up the streets of Jamestown, been carpenter and painter, dedicated a
church, performing all the parts, been church organist, studied science,
acted for the agent, and taken hold of law in a case where whiskey had
been sold to an Indian, and also in making a will. As to traveling, I
have been carried ninety miles in a canoe by Indians, free, paid an
Indian four dollars for carrying me twenty miles, have been carried
twenty more by a steamer at half-fare, and twenty more on another for
nothing, have rode on horseback, walked fifty miles, and “paddled my own
canoe” for forty-five more.
I have never had a vacation since I have been here, unless such things
as these may be called vacation. They are recreation, work, and
vacation, all at once. They are variety, and that is rest, the vacation
a person needs, with the satisfaction that a person is doing something
at the same time.