some Thompson River Indian Pipes. About 1/2 nat. size. (Drawn from a
sketch by Mr. James Teit.)]
Some tubular pipes are said to have had a flange around the mouth of the
bowl, similar to that on elbow pipes as in Fig. 103; but this flange
meets the body of the bowl with an even curve. Mr. Teit does not
distinctly remember having seen such flanged tubular pipe bowls among
the Thompson River Indians who gave him this information, but he saw one
specimen at least, of the elbow type with flanged bowl. He further
states that to his knowledge there is only one part of the country where
the semi-transparent green steatite is obtained; that is, on the west
side of the Fraser River, over twenty miles north of Lytton, which as
is well known is at the mouth of the Thompson River. This stone, when
polished and used, takes on a much darker hue than its original color.
The fire may be seen through the stone of the pipes when smoked in the
dark. The bluish gray steatite is the most commonly employed and it
turns black when polished and used. The Thompson River Indians can
usually tell from what part of the country the stone comes of which any
particular pipe is made.
The tubular form of pipe is remembered by the old Indians to have been
in use in the Thompson River region, although not so common as the
simple pipe bowls and elbow pipes, and one was seen in use in eastern
Washington as late as 1896.[331] On the other hand, no simple pipe bowls
known to be such, or elbow pipes have been seen among archaeological
finds. The bowl and elbow pipes are affiliated with forms found farther
east. This fact suggests that the tubular pipe was supplanted recently
by bowl and elbow forms brought in from the southeast, or at least from
the east. The westward movement of tribes due to the encroachment of our
settlements may have brought them, or some of them, and they may be
patterned after pipes seen in the hands of fur traders and their Indian
employees. The tubular pipe made of steatite, shown in Fig. 104, was
purchased from Mr. W. Z. York of Old Yakima (Old Town), who secured it
from Shaw-wa-way, an Indian known as "Young Chief Aleck," who lives on a
ranch three miles south of Old Yakima. This Indian is known to have
frequently visited the Okanogon region and it is possible that he
secured the pipe, decorated as it is, or got the idea for this
particular sort of decoration from that region. This is suggested by the
fact that this particular kind of decoration is common, especially on
more recent ornaments, in the Thompson River region, the people of which
in turn frequently visited the Okanogon country. The bowl of the pipe is
cut squarely across at the end where the outer edge has been rounded. It
is of the typical shape of this form of pipes, and has been hollowed out
by gouging contra-screw-wise. It meets the stem abruptly and the latter
is slightly larger than the base of the bowl, so that it seems to be
separated from it. The stem is very short and cylindrical and the end is
cut squarely off; but it is bevelled on each side so that about one
third of the end is left and the bevelled surfaces extend over half the
length of the stem. This beveling may have been to form the mouthpiece;
but it seems more likely that the pipe had a long stem similar to those
found in the Thompson River region.[332] This seems to have been broken
off obliquely near the bowl, then cut squarely across, and the other
side bevelled to give bilateral symmetry because one of these bevelled
surfaces appears as if it had been broken and then only slightly
smoothed; both of these surfaces and the square end of the stem seem to
have been more recently cut than the rest of the pipe. These three
surfaces seem less polished and as if they were made with a steel knife.
The bore of the stem measures 5 mm. in diameter. A portion of the bowl
is decorated by incised lines into which red paint has been daubed,
suggesting that it was recently applied; while the design itself, which
is further described on p. 131 under the section of art, is of figures
which suggest that it was made lately. Possibly the pipe is old, but was
recently broken and decorated with the incised design and paint.
[331] Teit, (a), p. 300.
[332] Smith, (d), Figs. 103, 104 and 111; (c), Figs. 37 1a, b.
The fragment of a sculptured tubular pipe made of steatite shown in Fig.
105 is apparently about half of the original object. It was found in an
Indian grave about a quarter of a mile from the bank of the Yakima River
at a point about nine miles above its mouth, in August 1902, by Mr. W.
F. Sonderman of Kennewick. Mr. Sonderman's collection from the immediate
vicinity contained glass beads, a metallic handle and buttons, as well
as chipped points. As the contents of the three graves from which he
obtained this collection, during the construction of an irrigation canal
were mixed, it seems that this pipe may belong to the same period as
that of the glass beads and other objects of European manufacture and
consequently may be modern, although it may be an old specimen,
deposited in a modern grave. The general form of the pipe was thought to
be that of a cone. The portion towards the front of the carving,
however, is somewhat longer than that towards the rear, and the back is
nearly flat, although this may be caused simply by the carving. The bore
is somewhat smaller at the mouth of the bowl than lower down. It was
apparently gouged out. Some traces of dirt, perhaps the remains of the
material smoked in the pipe may be seen towards its larger opening. The
carving, which represents a human form, is further described under the
section of art on p. 135. As the tubular form of pipe seems to be common
to this region, as well as to the Thompson River region, further north,
it would seem that this specimen may be a variation from the type or
merely one of these pipes made by an artist. It may be that such
sculptured forms of this type of pipe may not be found in the Thompson
River region, and that the carving of tubular pipes in this way may be
characteristic of the Yakima region, although the style of art suggests
that found in the Thompson River region and more especially in the
Lillooet Valley.
[Illustration: Fig. 104 (202-8122). Tubular Pipe made of Steatite. From
an Indian living three miles south of Old Yakima. 1/2 nat. size.
(Collected by Mr. York.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 105 (202-8120). Fragment of a Sculptured Tubular
Pipe made of Steatite. From near Kennewick. 1/2 nat. size. (Collected by
Mr. W. F. Sonderman.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 106 (202-8396). Pipe made of Limestone. From near
the head of Priest Rapids. 1/2 nat. size. (Collected and presented by
Mrs. J. B. Davidson.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 107 (20.0 1470). Pipe made of Sandstone. From the
Snake River Indians. 1/2 nat. size. (Collected and presented by Mr.
Owen.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 108. Pipe made of Blue Stone. From the Yakima
Valley, 1/2 nat. size. (Drawn from photograph 41503, 6-4. Original in
the collection of Mr. Janeck.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 109. Pipe made of Stone. From the Yakima Valley. 1/2
nat. size. (Drawn from photograph 44503, 6-4. Original catalogue No. 155
in the collection of Mr. Janeck.)]
Only one specimen of the second or simple bowl type was seen by us in
the whole region. It is shown in Fig. 106, and was found near the head
of Priest Rapids by a boy from whom Mrs. J. B. Davidson obtained it for
her collection. She afterwards presented it to our expedition. It is
made of schistose rock, apparently limestone, of gray color with lighter
veins. The object is oval in section, slightly longer than it is wide,
and a little wider than it is thick being 32 mm. long, 29 mm. wide, and
15 mm. thick. If slightly flatter, this pipe would resemble in shape the
third type. The inside of the bowl which was apparently gouged out, is
13 mm. in diameter; while the opening for the stem seems to have been
drilled. This opening is 7 mm. in diameter. The rim of the bowl is
flattened, and this flat surface resembles that of the part of a
hammerstone used for pecking. This style of pipe somewhat resembles some
of the pipes used by the Thompson River Indians of the present day and
together with elbow pipes, supplemented the tubular pipe in that region.
This suggests them to be more modern than the tubular pipes in this
region where also they are not as numerous. The type is not found among
the archaeological remains in the Thompson region, but Mr. Teit sent
one simple bowl pipe to the Museum from a very old grave at Spuzzum
besides two from the Thompson Indians.[333] The absence of this form of
pipe among archaeological specimens from the areas to the north and west
suggests that the culture of this region is somewhat more closely
related to that further east than are the cultures of the areas further
north and west. The pipe is ornamented with a circle and dot design
again mentioned under the section of art on p. 131.[334]
[333] Teit, (a), Figs. 275 and 276.
[334] Museum negative no. 44505, 6-6.
Specimens of the third or disk-shaped type are shown in Figs. 107, 108
and 109. The first, made of sandstone, is from the Snake River Indians,
was a part of Mr. D. W. Owen's collection, and was presented by him to
our expedition. It is nearly of the form of a disk but has slightly
bulging sides, 52 mm. long, 49 mm. wide, and 19 mm. thick. The mouth of
the bowl is 13 mm. in diameter; while the opening for the stem, at right
angles to it, is 9 mm. in diameter. The convex appearance of the sides
or ends of the disk is due to the beveling of these surfaces near their
edges. On each of these sides is an incised design. These are again
mentioned under the section of art on p. 125. The second specimen, shown
in Fig. 108, is oval in outline with slightly convex sides. The object
is made of blue stone and was found in the Yakima Valley. It is about 52
mm. long, 41 mm. wide, and 19 mm. thick. Parallel scratches on the
surface suggest that it was brought into shape by grinding with a piece
of sandstone, although these marks may be interpreted as those made with
a file. The opening in the bowl tapers evenly towards its base, from one
of the longer edges of the discoid; while the somewhat longer drilling
for the stem from one of the shorter edges of the disk, at right angles
to the bore of the bowl, is of nearly the same diameter throughout. The
specimen is in the collection of Mr. Louis O. Janeck of North
Yakima.[335] The third specimen of this type which is shown in Fig. 109
is No. 155 in the collection of Mr. Janeck, and was also found in the
Yakima Valley. It is made of stone resembling quartzite in appearance
and is of a waxy, yellowish brown color. It is nearly circular in
outline, almost flat on the rim, and the sides are somewhat convex. It
is 45 mm. long by 40 mm. wide and 19 mm. thick. The bore of the bowl is
16 mm. in diameter at the mouth, and is somewhat larger than that of the
stem, which is 10 mm. in diameter at its end, and at right angles to the
bowl. Each bore tapers from its outer opening to the point of juncture.
In the Nez Perce region to the east near Asotin city, this disk-shaped
type of pipe is found.[336] Mr. Fay Cooper Cole of the Field Museum of
Natural History believes the Tlingit have a variation of this type of
pipe and that it is also found in California. Its occurrence in Oregon
is mentioned by Moorehead.[337]
[335] Museum negative no. 41503, 6-4.
[336] Spinden, p. 189, Fig. 6, Plate IX.
[337] Moorehead, Fig. 27, p. 316.
The fourth or rectangular bowl type is shown in Figs. 110, 111 and 112.
The first shows the axis of the bowl and that of the stein, at nearly,
if not exactly, a right angle. The specimen is in the collection of Mr.
York, and is made of soft grit or sandstone. The outer opening of the
bowl is somewhat larger than that of the stem. There was a band around
the bowl, made up of a single thickness of thread which is not shown in
the figure.
[Illustration: Fig. 110. Pipe made of Soft Sandstone. Locality Unknown.
1/2 nat. size. (Drawn from a sketch. Original in the collection of Mr.
York.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 111. Pipe made of Steatite. Locality Unknown. 1/2
nat. size. (Drawn from a sketch. Original in the collection of Mr.
York.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 112. Pipe made of Soft Sandstone. Locality Unknown.
1/2 nat. size. (Drawn from a sketch. Original in the collection of Mr.
York.)]
The second of these specimens, shown in Fig. 111, is a simple elbow pipe
with the angle between the axis of the bowl and the stem, slightly
greater than 90 degrees. It is also in the collection of Mr. York and is
made of steatite, which he calls Wenatchee pipe stone. The outer opening
of the bowl is slightly larger than that of the stem. The third
specimen, shown in Fig. 112, is also of the simple elbow type and the
axis of the bowl is nearly at right angles to that of the stem. It is in
the collection of Mr. York, and is made of soft grit or sandstone of a
yellowish gray color. In the Thompson River region to the north,
according to Mr. Teit, there seems to be little doubt but that the
tubular pipe has been supplanted by the simple bowl and elbow
types.[338] This change may have been brought about by the copying of
the early trader's pipes but Mr. Teit believes it more likely to have
come from influence from the southeast, passed from tribe to tribe about
the same time as the advent of the horse or a little later. The Thompson
River Indians tell him that the tubular pipe continued to be the one in
common use as long as native tobacco only was used, but after the
introduction of manufactured tobacco the elbow type came to be
exclusively used because very much better adapted for holding the
latter kind of tobacco. In the Nez Perce region to the east, pipes with
rectangular bowls were found.[339] One of these bowls has an incised
design representing a tomahawk, which with the character of other
incisions on it suggest that it is modern. Only two finds of elbow pipes
have been reported on the coast. These,[340] which were of fragments,
were said by Mr. Edmond Croft to have been found by him in a shell heap
near Markham on Grey's Harbor, Washington. They are made of fine-grained
sandstone of a gray color. Both were apparently intended to be used with
a wooden stem and one of them has a ventral mid-rib from the mouth of
the stem nearly to the base of the bowl which reminds one somewhat of a
similar appendage on the pipe from the Yakima Valley shown in Fig. 113
and one from the Thompson Indians.[341] My supposition has been that
they reached the coast recently from this general region possibly by way
of the Columbia or were taken there by employees of the fur companies in
early historic times.
[338] Teit, (a), Figs. 271 and 306.
[339] Spinden, p. 188, Figs. 7 and 8, Plate IX.
[340] Smith, (b). Fig. 140.
[341] Teit. (a), Fig. 306.
The fifth type is illustrated by the specimen shown in Fig. 128. It is
the only specimen of this type which I have seen from the region. It is
now in the collection of Mrs. Jay Lynch at Fort Simcoe who obtained it
from Chief Moses. It is made of black steatite which Mrs. Lynch calls
Wenatchee pipe stone, inlaid with white metal and has a wooden stem. It
is comparatively modern as is shown by the presence of inlaid white
metal. The mouth of the bowl is 18 mm. in diameter, but tapers suddenly,
the rest of the bowl cavity being nearly cylindrical. The opening for
the wooden stem is 11 mm. in diameter, and also tapers suddenly to a
nearly even bore. It is of the same form as many of the pipes made of
red pipe stone (catlinite). This form of pipe is found throughout the
Minnesota-Dakota region. This specimen, however, bears four carvings,
which together with the inlaid white metal design are further mentioned
under the section of art on pp. 118 and 135. It would seem that this
type of pipe belongs to the region further east, and as no ancient pipe
of this form has been found in this whole region, as well as from the
fact that this specimen marks the most westerly occurrence of this form,
so far as we know, we may conclude that it was introduced from the east
in comparatively modern times. The type of carving, however, may be of
more local origin. The bringing together of several animal forms may be
associated with the idea of the totem poles found to the west; but no
more so than the wooden pipe stems of the Plains which the general
character of the carving more closely resembles.[342] In this
connection, it may be well to remember that in the Nez Perce region,
catlinite for pipes seems to have been acquired from the Plains
tribes.[343] A pipe made from stone found in the Cascade Mountains of
Washington, is in the collection of Mr. C. G. Ridout, of Chelan,
Washington, who states that it has a representation of a bear and a man
on the shaft back of the bowl.
[342] Museum negative no. 44508, 6-9, 6-10, 6-11.
[343] Spinden, p. 188.
A specimen of the sixth type is shown in Fig. 113. It is the only one of
this style which I have seen in the whole region, and was obtained from
a Yakima Indian. It is in the collection of Mr. McCandless. It is made
of steatite, which Mr. McCandless calls "sandstone from the northern
part of Wenatchee Lake." The form of the pipe seems to be a
conventionalized tomahawk pipe. The bowl is circular in section and
somewhat urn-shaped and rests upon the part that is drilled for the stem
and which is rather square in cross section with slightly convex sides.
Projecting from the lower part of this is the form which represents the
tomahawk blade. It is wider at its convex edges than where it joins the
base of the stem part. Its three edges are flat, and it is of about
equal thickness throughout. The pipe is somewhat stained by tobacco. It
seems likely that this was modelled after the metal hatchet, tomahawk or
tomahawk pipe, introduced by the traders,[344] being a rather modern
pipe, since such objects do not seem to have been used in early times in
the great plateau region according to Lewis.[345]
[344] Museum negative no. 44506, 6-7.
[345] Lewis, p. 190.
[Illustration: Fig. 113. Pipe made of Steatite. From a Yakima Indian.
1/2 nat. size. (Drawn from photograph 44506, 6-7. Original in the
collection of Mr. McCandless.)]
The seventh type is illustrated in Fig. 127. The specimen is the only
one of the style which I have seen from this whole region and so closely
resembles in its carving the work of the Kwakiutl, Haida and Tsimshian
Indians of the coast to the northwest, that I am inclined to believe it
was brought in as a gift or by trade. The material is apparently soft
slate, but is rather light in color, possibly having been burned. Its
appearance suggests that it is the same as that used by the Haida
Indians on the Queen Charlotte Islands, for the carving of such things
as dishes, miniature totem poles, and pipes. The pipe is made up of
carvings representing among other things a bird, a human form and a
human face, which are more fully described under the section of art on
p. 136. This specimen was found two feet deep in earth at one side of a
grave in a little hillside on Toppenish Creek, four miles southeast of
Fort Simcoe. Above the earth were rocks, and the grave was marked by a
circle of stones. In the grave were found elk teeth, and a sea shell,
filled with a blue powder, evidently paint, and covered with what
appears to be gut or a bladder-like skin. What is described as a silver
coin, afterwards lost, was found with this pipe. It is possible that it
may have been a silver disk or medal. The bowl of the pipe, which was
gouged out, is in the middle of the carving, and the tube for the
reception of the stem projects from the end under the human form. The
upper part of the human figure is broken off. A hole was drilled in the
opposite end of the pipe through the lower part of the bird form, but if
it had any connection with the bowl, this is not now discernible.[346]
The specimen shown in Fig. 59 and considered as a mat presser reminds
one of an unfinished pipe.
[346] Museum negative no. 44509, 6-9, 6-10, 6-11.
ART.
The graphic and plastic art of the early people of this region is
illustrated by pictographic line paintings in red and white on the
basaltic columns of the cliffs;[347] petroglyphs of the same general
style pecked into similar cliffs; incised designs on stone, bone, antler
and dentalium shells, and carvings both incised and pecked in stone.
Some of the objects found are colored by red ochre or have it rubbed
into the lines of their incised designs. Examples of graphic art seem to
be more common than those of plastic art.
[347] A few of which were figured and described in Smith, (g), pp.
195-203, and abstracted in The Scientific American Supplement, pp.
23876-8, Vol. LVIII, No. 1490, July 23, 1904, and in Records of the
Past, pp. 119-127, Vol. IV, Part IV, April, 1905.
The paintings and pecked designs on cliffs are more or less geometric
although pictographic in character. The incised designs are still more
geometric and include the circle and dot commonly found in the Thompson
River region.[348] This design is also common on modern objects from the
coast of British Columbia and Washington, but was not there present
among archaeological finds. Lewis[349] states that according to the
early writers, in the general area of which this is a part, porcupine
quills were much used for decorating articles of clothing and that
later, beads were used for this purpose. The modern designs are largely
floral. Among the Nez Perce, floral and plant designs in beadwork are
particularly common although some geometric designs occur, as on belts,
the decoration of which is largely geometric, as squares, triangles and
similar figures.[350] Lewis[351] believes that the designs of the
general region were originally geometric and that some of the modern
geometric designs are survivals, while others suggest eastern influence.
He further states that floral designs are found among the Salish tribes
but to a much less extent. We found no floral designs among the
archaeological specimens in the Yakima area. Some of the incised work,
on certain of the carvings is of good technique, and artistic execution.
This is noticeable in the object made of antler, carved on one surface
to represent a human figure in costume, shown in Fig. 121 and on the
dish shown in Fig. 116. Inlaying with white metal was practised in
comparatively modern times. Animal heads are represented by the
specialization of knobs on pestles, an animal form by a mortar and human
forms by some of the pictographs, and petroglyphs, the incised antler
figure and several of the pipes.
[348] Smith, (c), Figs. 360b and 378; (d), Figs. 109, 110 and 111.
[349] Lewis, p. 191.
[350] Spinden, p. 236.
[351] Lewis, p. 191.
Many of the representations are realistic, others are highly
conventional. Some conventional representations are explained by similar
figures. For instance, the radiating lines of the pictographs shown in
Plate XVI are probably explained satisfactorily by similar figures in
Plate XI, Fig. 2, such radiations on the costumed figure in antler shown
in Fig. 121 or by the feather headdresses worn by the present natives.
Spinden states that in the Nez Perce region, realistic figures are
probably of recent origin.[352] One of the carvings is clearly of the
art of the northwest coast, from which the object or the artist who
executed it must have come. Some of the pictographic-geometric and
conventional figures probably represent guardian spirits and illustrate
dreams done in symbols. A few art forms are evenly spaced on objects but
only a few are distorted to fit the shape of the field. Pictographic
symbols and conventional figures may be placed in groups to form designs
as in the arrangement of the circles and dots on the pipe shown in Fig.
106.
[352] Spinden, p. 236.