Cheyenne transporter. [volume] (Darlington, Indian Terr.) 1879-1886, 1884-12-15
The Indians of Alaska.


A Southern Alaska Indian looks like
his Arizona cousin and has his vices.
but in other respects he is usually an
inferior article. Cunning workman
though he is, fashioning curious and
well-carved houshold utensils out of
native woods and bone, making nets
and baskets and silver bracelets and
rings for nose and fingers, still the Pu-
eblo dweller distances him in manu-
featuring blankets. dyeing woods, cary
ing stones and making silver orna-
ments, and is generally hansomer,
cleaner, braver and altogether more
attractive man. An Apache mean
est of southern Indiaus-will fight and
show spirit, but an Alaskan never.
The far south native is a low-souled
tramp; an oily, fish-eating, supersti-
tious, licentious creation; trcacherous
and wilful. He is as stOical as though
carved. from wood; he is without pride !;
a bigamist; sordid creature, afraid
even of his wife, whom he always asks
to trade for him and always leaves
pcnniless and helpless. That is, the
Thinklets were generally mean class
before they began to see the benefits
of the white mans civilization. AS q
general thing it does not improve the
moral standing of Indians to have
white men come to live near them.
They copy but few of the virtues of the
newcomers and are pretty sure TO in
dulge in most of their vices. When
Alaska was more forsaken than it is at
present the Indians did not get drunk
whenever they could, which they do
now; nor did they sell their wives and
daughters to the highest bidder. But
they had other faults, such as putting
inocent people to death, because they
thought they had evil spirit; burning a
wife with her dead husband, that both
might go to happy hunting grounds
together, and other such pleasantries;
and while civilization has rendered
them more depraved in some things, it
has on the other hand, brought work to
them and offered a glimpse, at least.
of better modes of living, of which
some have taken advantage.
There have been converts to Christi
anity made here and there and few
have moved into comfortable quarters
and very many have learned to wolk
hard and to save little money. One
notices the few advancements made
with pleasure and only regrets that
there has not been more progress. If
Montesquieu was right in calling that
people happy whose annals are tire
some, Alaska Indians must have been
supremely contented. During the years
of their occupancy of Alaska they have
done absolutely nothing towards devel-
oping the natural resources of their
possessions. Not only have they never
built any towns, but they have neglect
ed the timber, overlooked the ores and
refused to cultivate the garden dis
tricts. Whatever has been done up to
the present time Is due to the
white man. Before his advent ma
tive was content to paddle about the
waters in his canoe and to live upon
the fish and game which hunger com
PEELED him to catch. As an actually,
an Indian here is a badly housed, oily,
depraved and lazy being. AS a posi-
bility, he may be made useful in devel-
oping, under proper tutelage, the vast
resources of the little understood but
rich Territory which we
own. -AtdSEd Letter n San Francisco
Chronicle