The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1882-08-16
Queen Charlotte Islands and the Haidas.

The climate OF the Queen Chariot,
Islands is excessively humid, and they
are almost everywhere covered witt
magnificent coniierous trees. Mount
aims 1000 to 5000 feet high rise in theil
central portion, and they are penetrated
on all sides by dark deep iiords with
rocky walls.
TO the northeast, it Is true, wide
stretch OF low and nearly level country
occurs, which may some day support 4
farming population; but al the present
time its sombcr woods, filled with dense
underground. and barricaded with
PROSTATE trunks in every stage OF de-
cay, offer little 10 induce either Indian
or white TO penetrate them. The Hal.
das, therefore, though cultivating here
and there along the shores small pota.
TO patches, are essentially fishermen.
Few paths or trails traverse the in,c.
rior Of the islands, and Of these some
formerly used when the population wa
greater are now abandoned
The halibut is found in great album.
dance in the vicinity OF the island, aud
1t is more particularly on this fish that
the llaidas depend. Their villages are
invariably situated along the shore,
often on bleak, wayc-Iashcd parts Of the
coast, but always IN proximity To pro-
ductive halibut banks. Journeys are
made in canoes alurZ the coast The
canoes are skillluily followed from the
grea, ccdar-trcc- Of the region, which,
after being worked down tOa certain
small thickness. are steamed and spread
by the insertion vi eros pieces I'LL they
are made Ia assume Il most graceful
form, and show lines which would salts.
" the most la-tidiou, -hiu-huildrr In
their larger canoes the Ilnlda, DO not
hesitate to make long voyages on the
open sen; and in former days, by their
frequent drscrnls on the coast of the
mainland, and the facility with which
they rctrcaIcd again to their own islands,
they rendered themselves more dread
sd than any tribe from Vancouver to
Sitka
In their mode of lie, and the iuganu-
ity and shiit thry display in their man.
ufacturc OF canoe, and other articles,
the Haidas do not difcrc..rutially from
the other tribes inhnb.t'ng the northern
part OF the coast 81 British Columbia
and Southern Alaska. IN the queen
Charlotte Islands. however, The peculiar
STYLE VI architecture and arr rl~rH here
among the Indian, OF the west coast
more or les, prominently exhibited
appears u attain ~ greatest duy,lup.
mcnt. Whether this may show that
10 the llnidas or their ancestors the in
PRODUCTION vi this is due, or indicate
merely that with the Greater isolation oi
these people, and consequent increased
measure Of security, the particular IDEAS
themselves forth more fully, wc may
never know. The situation of the
islands, and the comparative inlre-
quency with which they have been Wis
tied for many years, have at least tend
ed to preserve intact many features
which have already vanished from the
customs and manufactures OF most Other
tribes.
As before stated the permanent vii
lagos Of the llaidas are invariably situ-
atcd at the scaShore. They consist
generally OF a single long row Of houses,
with but a narrow grassy border be-
tween it and the beach, ON which the
canoes of the tribe (for each village
constitutes chieftaincy) are drawn up.
In front OF each house stands II symbol
ical carved post, while other carved
posts, situated irrrgularly, and differing
somewhat in form from those proper TO
the houses, are generally memorials TO
the dead. Such village, seen from Il
little distance OIL, he houses and posts
gray with the weather, resembles 4
strip of half burned forest with dead
rnmpikes' The little cloud Of smok,
from the various fires may, however
serve TO indicate its true character. -
George w. DdwSon, IN Hupcr's MaJG
sine