It was the Chief's responsibility to ensure that all members of his lineage were adequately provided for. Within the lineage, rank was judged in descending order according to one's relationship to the Chief. Much of the rich ceremonial life of the coastal nations was devoted to recounting the exploits and activities of the various supernatural ancestors. Many of these ceremonies and rites occurred during the winter when people were gathered in the village after a summer of fishing and gathering. The ceremonies were often organised by secret societies whose high ranking members had undergone the required initiation rites.
W ithin a village each family was also ranked.
The chief of the most powerful and prestigious family was therefore the village Chief. The village Chief had certain rights, such as being able to display specific crest figures on objects such as totem poles , or to be the first to invite guests to a feast. E very village had a number of slaves belonging to different lineages. In general the slaves were taken during warfare and wealthy lineage slaves would be ransomed while poorer ones would be kept to perform various menial tasks. F or all the groups of the Pacific Coast, the ocean was the major source of food, providing salmon, halibut and other fishes, shellfish, smelt, crabs, seaweed, and whale.