Arizona weekly enterprise., 1889-05-18
A POTLATClI IN ALASKA.
CURIOUS FESTIVAL OBSERVED BY
 THE THL.lNkETS.

The Blanket a. . Social Factor and IndeA
 of Weaith-Savlos Up to Be Able to
 Give a Big Blow Out That Leaves rhs
 Giver in Complete Poverty.
 A "potlatch" Is a social institution pe- culiar to the natives along the North Pacific coast. The word means ''big feast. but that docs not signify all that the same words do to the white races. Blankets are the signs of wealth among these people To have so many biankets is among them to be just so rich These blankets are stored up and boarded just as the miser hoersls his gold. but for a totally different purpose. The idea ie to have big "potistch" some time. Often this takes place wlie., the owner Of the blankets gets past middle life and feels that the time has come when he can az ford to make his social display. Again they are laid up and treasured so that big "potlatch" may be held after the owner is dead
 adjoining Sitka now hns about 1 800 win ter inhabitants. those who gre out fish ing and working at the canneries all s'im- me. having come in to stay until work begins again in summer. Though they have been brought under some civiiizing influences they are very reluctantly sur rendering their native customs. Among those to which they still cling Is the GUS tom of the ''potlatch.
 ALASKAN POLYGAky.
 At 1 o'clock cannon shot was heard s-, + No %t, ,lx of many of the Americans here. h. quiry disclosed the fact that one of the head men of the village had just died, and that the cannon shot from an old Russian carTonade was to announce the death. When the whites first began to make inroads among these natives polyg- amy and slavery were settled institutions among them Both still exist to some extent at points of the greatest distance
 from civilizing influence. The Russian church in Alaska has steadily pur- sued the policy of breaking up
 polygamy among the natives ever
 since it's missionaries began their
 work more than a century ago. The
 headman of the Sitka village was
 brought within the fold of that church,
 but attempted for long time to conceal
 the fact that he was indulging in plu-
 rality Of wives. When of at distant
 fishing and canning stations he could do
 this with impunity and with little or no
 danger that any of his people would ex-
 pose him. They will not testify against
 each other if it can be helped When he
 came into the ranch or village last fall
 he was detected in this mode of living,
 and. in manner. coerced into surren-
 dering his youngest and most attractive
 wife He had been married to the first
 one United States fashion" and as the
 Russian church does not recognize di
 vorce he could not put her away in favor
 of the younger one.
 The result of this was that this stolid
 taciturn Indian, whose appearance and
 general conduct would indicate that no
 particle of sentiment entered into hi
 character, actually pined away and diet
 of grief. Nothing that his people coull
 do would stimulate him to any exertion
 None of the blandshments and caresse ] of his first wife, and she was kind t } him, could arouse him from his stupo } of grief. and this stout and lusty fisher ) man. who had braved hundreds of fierc ) storms in his cedar canoe. died actual, of a broken heart.
 THE POTLATCH.
 L14-N-----ss.aa~-s- ssiaetlasch He hs- been laying up blankets against the da of royal, roistering 'potlatchr in hi lifetime. A score of natives visited til l traders store and bought nearly to t of stuff for the feast. Canned goods 3 boxes of crackers by the dozen, an 2 everything that could be obtained to ca 5 were hauled over by them to the viilag :. on trucks to be consumed in the poi
 latch." which will last for sever;
 days and nights. A "potlatch" withou
 something strong to drink is . comparc s lively tame affair. The sale of whisk 1. to these people is carefully guarde :, against, and when detected, which n quite often, severely punished. The n buy large quantities of nioIasses. how q ever, and from this surreptitiously disti r an intoxicating drink called ''hooch, It noo," with which they enliven the 'i ''potlatches.
 > The first night of this one has jul '1 passed, and the bowling and dancin g which went on in the large house of u b dead headman showed that considerab 7- "hoochenoo" had in some way been pr 1T vided for the occasion. The house h; le no chimney. and the smoke from u T, fire. built in the center of the floor, e le capes through hole in the roof TT n walls glisten with black soot. The dant er has no figures, but is simply cadence G. step in circle around the fire, the tin le being given on sort of tomtom or tar IS bourine. When each dancer gets tire D. he squats down anywhere to eat and res ef So it goes on all night long, and day Ia and day out, until the supplies are |;
 gone, and the blankets all parted with
 buy the means of keeping up the "pc It latch"
 IT, The duration of the wake" depen of upon the supply of blankets. The "pc e, latches" invariably end in the impove D. ishment of those who give them. A Il IS tive who gives ''potlatch" and retal D. any of his property afterwards is d as graced. The widow in this particul he case, has entered eagerly into the festi' m ties, and yet realizes that ii will take t )l- last blanket before it is all over. ss- Some idea may be formed of the w he these '.potlatches'' end when state IT. fact that the steamer brought up two Int ht an women and one .'buck" from villa h. 200 miles northeast of this. all of who nd had their noses bit off in a "hoochen on potlatch." They all got drunk and rl- man kit tha poSoS off tyvn of tha yyon1e