YALTH, AND THE BUTTERFLY
In the beginning, when Yalth, the great raven, the friend and benefactor
of the human race, was looking for a good region for men to occupy, the
butterfly hovered over his head as he flew. When he came to the country
now occupied by the Haida nations, the butterfly pointed with his
proboscis to the good lands and said, “Where the bear are, there salmon,
sprouts and good living will be found in abundance;” so that accounts for
the residence of the Haidas on the Prince of Wales island, and for bear
living so plentifully in that region.
At the base of the column is the beaver, the totem of Schooltka’s wife
and children.
At one corner of his house is a commemorative column somewhat shorter
than the totem column erected to his memory. Among other events pictured
on the incompleted column is his cordial welcome to the missionary and
the children with books in their hands, illustrate quite truthfully the
attitude toward the whites of this most truly noble Indian of the Haida
race. He was always the friend of the white man, and when the Rev. J. L.
Gould, the Presbyterian missionary arrived in the village, he received
a warm welcome from Schooltka. His comfortable house was placed at the
disposal of the missionary and his family, and the mission school was
conducted there for several years. The chief has now been dead several
years, but leaves a wife who possesses many of his good qualities and
shares in his friendship for the whites.
A visit to the home of Mrs. Schooltka would not be without interest. The
house is a modern form of Haida dwelling, covering quite an extensive
area and two stories in height, but constructed of huge timbers and hewed
boards in Haida fashion. One wishing to enter is conducted down several
steps to the door, which opens on the first floor, which is several feet
below the level of the ground. One large room includes all the lower
portion of the house. The great posts which compose its massive frame
are richly carved and painted with various traditions of the race, tribe
and family. Slate and wood carving rattles, carved instruments, models
of various shaped canoes and soldier clothes are scattered hither and
thither. There is a stage-like platform about six feet in width reaching
quite around a room which is only partially lighted by two windows in the
front of the house. In the center of the room a large box stove has taken
the place of the crude fireplace and smoke hole of their more savage
days. In one corner is a modern cooking stove with its pots, kettles,
pans, skillets, etc., showing that civilized methods of cooking have
superceded the old way of cooking meat and fish on sticks, or by roasting
in holes dug in the ground under a hot fire. Mrs. Schooltka has found
an easier way of boiling her food than by putting it in a water-tight
basket, covering it with water and casting hot stones into it. But after
all the most strikingly interesting figure in the room is Mrs. Schooltka
herself. In stature she is short and stout, though her figure is by no
means repulsive. She possesses a very alert expression of countenance
and her face is on the whole pleasing. Though about 40 years of age, one
would think her very much younger, owing to the absence of wrinkles in
her face. She takes a keen interest in everything, and never tires of
telling stories of her late husband. A visitor would no doubt be much
amused at the very indefinite idea of time which these Indians have.
Thus, if this good, but simple-minded woman is asked how long she lived
with her husband, her answer will be, in mixed English and Chinook,
“Klo-nass, ni-ka ha-lo, cum-tux; nika tum-tum klone hundred years,”
meaning that she was not sure, but thought she had lived with him about
300 years.
[Illustration: MRS. SCHOOLTKA, WHO LIVED 300 YEARS WITH HER HUSBAND]
There is one thing in which the Haidas differ widely from other Indians:
they are not fond of bright colors in their clothing, black being always
preferred. Even in their shawls and handkerchiefs they prefer that they
be black or some other conservative color. Missionary societies sending
them second-handed clothing make a great mistake in this particular.
Though the Haidas are as fond of display as formerly their ceremonial
dances, in which the whole tribe engaged, are now rare, in fact they
have not been seen for several years. The spirit of imitation has taken
hold of the Haida and he now copies the methods of Europeans in such
matters. Most of the petty chiefs have been to Victoria, B. C., and seen
the soldiers drill. They have also witnessed the operations of the fire
department of that place.
[Illustration: SILVER AND COPPER ORNAMENTS
HAIDA INDIANS]
Copying British styles they have uniformed themselves with red
coats, forming quite a large army, and have a brilliantly uniformed
fire company. Their parades are frequent and they present a very
self-important, if not formidable, appearance as they march proudly
along, keeping time to the wild, grand music of the tribes, their own
boisterous drums, and the native whistles and trumpets, through their
rough narrow streets, performing various evolutions and halting to drill.
Indifferent whether armed with guns or sticks, many of the swords of the
officers being of wood, they draw up in line, go through the facings,
marching and counter-marching, the manual of arms and various other
exercises. Conspicuous on such occasions is Mr. John, whose portrait
is here presented. He is very ambitious to become one of the general
officers of the army. So, as often as the drilling day comes around he
calls on the Rev. Gould, who was a soldier in the late civil war, for
instructions in military tactics. On one occasion the good man asked
him if he expected to learn in a moment what it took him (Mr. Gould)
three years to learn. This discouraged Mr. John for a time, but he soon
recovered and is now occasionally a military pupil of Mr. Gould’s. The
parades of the fire company are pompous and magnificent, but damaging
stories are told of them so far as their real usefulness is concerned.
One evening Mr. E. T. McLeod looked out of the door of his store and
beheld one of the Indian’s houses in flames. With the aid of a fire
extinguisher and a little water he quickly quenched the blaze before the
fire company arrived. The Indians who composed the company were very
angry with him for not waiting until they could get their suits on and
reach the scene in dress parade uniform. The latter incident illustrates
the childish notions of a savage race capable of a high degree of
cultivation.