The National tribune., 1894-04-05

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mountains, they pass their existence without
| meeting any white people, save when some
| curious explorer like Glave or Schwatka, OIL
some intrepid hunter like Dalton, goes among
them, or when few of their leading men make
an occasional visit to the coast under the
| guardianship and strict surveillance of their
ChIlcat business managers.
! The industry most interesting to the outside
| world is hunting and the quantity of furs sent
| out by them is not inconsiderable. They con-
sist principally of marten, mink, beaver, otter,
| fox, and bear skins. These find their way to
| the trading posts along the coast from Tongas
| to the mouth of Copper River or TO traders
| along the Yukon.
The furs brought out by the Stickeen River
| find their way to Wrangel; those from the
| Takou, and good many from Chilcat, reach the
Juneau market; all those brought over the
Chilcoot Pass are sold st Wilson'S ON the Dyea.
The stores at Yakutat and around the mouth of
Copper River buy good many. and every year
the Simpsean Indians pay Chilcat visit and
| carry away good portion. Most of these furs
sooner or later find their way to the Victoria
| market.
The fur trade OF the Yukon Valley has been
controlled by the Alaska Commercial Co., but
the North American Transportation and Trad
ing Co expects to come in this year for fair
share of it,
Early in the Spring the Indians from the
village of I-shi-ik and neighboring villages
bring their fnrs down to the village of Wes-
kut-i-heen, which is situated on one of the
streams among the head waters of the Alseck
River. They go there because they are short
of food, and there are their caches of fish, put
up the preceding year. After remaining for a
few weeks some of them go back for few
weeks hunting, while others remain until the
salmon begin to run, which is about the lst of
June.
The salmon are very plentiful and of fine
quality. being the kind known as King salmon.
These are taken in large numbers, sun-dried,
and smoked. The weather is warm and they
dry quickly. They are then smoked. To do
this the Indians build framework some seven
or eight feet high, and roof it over tightly with
cottonwood and quaking asp; the sides are left
open. Close under this roof the salmon are
hung and fires built on the ground,
The process of smoking is simple, but effect
i've. After sufficient quantity has been cured
a cache is built for them. In the building of this
considerable ingenuity is exercised to keep the
store safe from the bears and other wild animals.
The timber thronghout this section is thick
and the Indian cuts off four or five trees stand
ing near together, some % feet from the ground;
from these the bark is carefully peeled, and
upon them he builds little log house and roofs
it over with bark. In this he stores away his
smoked fish, takes away the ladder, hewn from
log, and there it remains safe and secure until
the next Springs migration brings him back
once more. Inc bears Will not climb the smooth
timbers, and if the wolverines do get up they
are not strong enough to break in.
From the time the salmon commence run
ming it usually takes about six weeks to put up
the stock of fish, and it is then time to begin
laying in stock of provisions for the Winter;
for the salmon is used only in the Spring, and
when the Indians leave their fishing grounds
they take no fish away with them more than
few days supply. The hunters start off for
the hunting grounds by themselves. and the
women follow with a camping outfit.
The country of the I-shi-ik Indians is quite
open, and game can often be seen when several
miles away. The game consists of bears, Carl
bou, moose, mountain sheep, and ibex; and
wherever the game is found there a camp is
bnilt and the meat cured. The softer parts of
the animals such as the liver and intestines,
are eaten at once; but the flesh is dried and
smoked for Winter use
The atmosphere is so clear and dry in these
higher attitudes that only q few days are re-
quired for the curing, and the game is so plen-
tiful that often as many as so carcasses will be
found in a camp at once. The meat is nice
and sweet after 1t is dried, and is pronounced
good by those who have eaten it.
This is more than can be said OF their SAL
mon, for along the rivers and lowauds the