The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1890-01-23
THE NATIVES or ALASKA
1 MiSsiOnary'S Pictures Of Their Habits
and Node Of Life.
1mmoFAIlGy the West COmmon vice.
They Practice 1uaantieids ana
Kindred Grimes.

year quite . large number Of new mem
bers were added to our little congregation.
Most Of these last members were children
from our school. We have our diseour-
aEements and often are disappointed in
those We are hoping in, but our successes
are 30 many more that we have never
become disheartened, but look forward to
the future with cheer and simple trust.
One Of the greatest evils we have TO
nnnteno with iS immortality. It is %
common among our people that they can
scarcely be made to realize the enormity
Of the evils The very best Of them are
not exempt from this sin, and the young
are led into Il with no thought Of wrong.
We have had to expel one Of our large
school boys for this. feel sure Il was a
much the fault Of the mother Of the girl
a. Il was his own, while the girl was
mere child and had nothing 10 say In the
matter.
Ifully believe that sonleof these women
have ten or twelve husbands before they
settle down, and even when they have
children and are old enough to be steady
they think nothing Of leaving their hus-
band and taking some one else. Some,
Of course, are worse than others, while
there are with them as among any people
what would be called outcasts. The men
a. Q rule leave the children with the
mother, yet ! know Of cases where the
children were divided-the father pFoba-
bly, taking one boy and leaving the rest
with their mother. Ny heart aches for
the girls Of our part Of Alaska. They are
made perfect prostitutes BY their parents
from the time they are nina o. ten years
old until that parent dies. .
They are given to one man who is ex-
pected TO trap and fish for the father. II
he Is lazy, Or u he will not give up all his
time Ut his furs 10 her father, hs is chased
away and some one else put in his place,
and the poor girl cannot even leave and
60 with him; no matter how much they
may care for each other, they must part.
In this way there are constant changes
and II is hard to change their minds on
the subject. The parents count on the
gain their daughters will bring, while
sons will leave them O. soon as they are
Of manageable age 10 serve the parents
Of the girl they take as wife.
No wonder the girls become careless
and untrue to their companions; and is
Il . surprise that the young men should
tire Of the demanding and exacting ways
Of their father-in.law, and seek an easier
lot, or q many Of them do, become Loaf
erS, only staying at one village until their
welcome runs out, and then tramping on
TO the next stopping place.
think there is more true virtue In the
men than in the women, but again
would plead the helplessness Of the women
"a. better their own state.
Little jamie, the incest and brightest
girl Of our school, came 10 me and said,
''Its too bad cannot come 10 school any
more. I would like to come, but I have
been given TO Q man and now ! must stay
away and be with him." again she said
how bad Il made her feel. was much
moved with pity and sympathy for the
poor, dear child, but was a. helpless to
sG,s her from her fate as she was herself.
As I have said before, the people are
not vicious or dangerous In any way, but
they continually practice 90 many Of the
evils found among uncivilized people that
Il 10 shocking ct times how little they
think Of the wrong there 10 In Il all.
This ID ono more Of our hard tasks, 10
get the people 10 sufficiently understand
the vileness Of sin, TO leave Of from
doing Il. They may say ''yes," and
agree that II Is all wrong, yet they viii
not give II up, but only try TO hide II
from your view; and with this they are
satisfied. They say Il never maEred their
happiness before and what harm can
there be In it, They % rule are very
kind to each other. I never saw them
other than this, although they do some
times get jealous and make trouble by
talking unkindly Of the other party.
One crime they do commit which none Of
them recognize % such, and that is, 10
kin oR unwelcome infants, especially
girls; and they also kin old and helpless
persons. II they do not do this, they
care for them &c poorly that they live
their last days In hunger and nakedness
and eventually die Of neglect and misery.
They sometimes club 10 death and
burn with oil q "shaman" or witch"
who is suspected Of killing too many
innocent people. A case o. this very
kind We know Of, for the witch was an
old woman that We had with rs part Of
one winter when she was sick. They
said she had killed several children;
which had enragsd the Whols village,
and her own husband dubbed her TO
death, slled an her Points and burned
her with Oh. Such dreadful deeds as
thess are shocking to Us.
II We cay anything 70 them, they may
say, ''it b wrong" but they also excuse
themselves BY saying that u b their cus-
tom and that others have done h beiore
them. u.
L a. = 4 -.