Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1877-03-14
Iudian Dtyfuifies.

Among the rude and unciviiized
tribes Of the Northwest coast, the idea of
divinity was very diverse, and in some
cases obscure. The Tinneh, a great
people occupying a vast expanse of
territory, reaching from the Arctic
Ocean southwark TO the fifty-fifth
parallel OF latitude, worship the ''man
in the moon," who, as they suppose,
formerly lived among them As poor
and ragged boy. This boy once made
so large pair of snow-shOes that he at
tracted the attention and ridlcule of the
entire community where he resided,
and became the object of much heartless
sport on the part of the villagers. But
soon there came a time of great scarcity;
the hunter traYersed the forests in vain;
the earth bore no fruitage. Still, 10
their surprise, when every hope of sue
cess was exhausted, they were often
led TO freshly-killed game by some
mysterious influence. Their benefactOr
soon proved TO be none other than the
poor boy with the great snow-shoes-
LAAt tA.1EtL Va lltAl lAL4AhAts
grateful to him at first, they soon forgot
his benefactions when the time plenty
returned, so much so as on one occasion
to refuse him a morsel of fat meat. The
divine persorage who had externally
manifested himself to them in the guise
OF a ragged boy, now offended, took his
departure to his residence in the moon.
Hover, in 4 month, he returned, ap-
pearing as a full-grown man, fOrgave
their ingratitude, told them that his
home was in the moon, and that he
would always assist them in the chase.
one punishment, however. they must
suffer, namely, that hcncefOrward ami
mails should be lean the entire winter,
and only fat III the summer.
The NoOtkas Of Columbia have tradi- |
tiOn of a benefactor and teacher who /
appeared TO them long ago. He came
10 them up the sound in canoe of |
copper. The paddle in his hand was
copper; even his clothing was of the /
same metal. This mysterious, copper |
clad old man sojourned for a while 1
among them, taught them the use of the |
metal which made him so conspicuous |
told them that he came from the sky, |
and that some time in the future, when |
their land should be destroyed, they |
would all die, but, after death, rise and
live with him above. Enraged at this pro-
phccy of their destruction, they arose
and Killed him, and, in possessing them
selves Of the canoe, fell heir to the bene-
fits which arise from the knowledge of |
copper. They, however, repented of
their crime when they realized, at too
late an hour, that the copper-man was
the incarnation of their deity, The Great
Spirit, The Ban dJoce.
In both of these legends we observe
the tendency, alluded to moment ago,
of first personifying the introduction of
civilizing influences, and then of deify-
ing that personification. In the boy
with the great snow-shoes, suddenly
elevated to the position of divine patror
of the chase. we see clearly some inven-
tive genius, who, ridiculed at first by
his fellows, at last is acknowledged a
benefactOr on account of his discovery
of improved appliances for hunting.
The copper-man is nothing more than
the introducer of copper among the
NoOtkas.-AEplet0a's Journal.