The Opelousas courier., 1897-02-27
RESOURCES OF ALASKA.
NOT THE ICY WASTE IT WA5 SUP.
POSED TO Be WHEN BOUGHT.
es:s, Waters Teeming with Fish and
Other Sources OF Wealth.

ana MtSSrS. tW3r ami sumner,
Though whose representations Inc bar
| gain had. III q large measure, been
n"ur. cHme in for a coed round share
OF abuse. Is time vent OH, however.
aEd It's magnificent mineral. lumber
and fishing resources became better
understood. popular prejudice was
gradually overcome. People began T.,
appreciate the newly-ar4uiretl terri
tory. and the only wonder to-day is
that The government should ne 81
a%Da1hc1ic In its administration
Alaska to-day has not the dignity oi
n Territory. ii is simply a judicial dis
tTict, governed by the laws OF Oregon
that were in vogue before 1881, and
then, too. only such laws as are aIpli-
cable 10 Alaska. the applicability being
left to the judge OF the district 10 de-
terminp.
ALASKA is separated from Oregon by
Il thousand miles. the natives are diff
ferent in every way fram those Of Ore
gon. The Rus-ian-speaking people vic
chose to remain in Alaska cannot be
compared with any portion Of the pop
ulation OF Oregon. The whites who
came and are eonlitiy are largely from
the East.
The natives from Cape Fox To Cop
per River, on the islands and 1ll}on the
coast are improperly called Indians.
All with the exception Of Il few upon
the lower part OF Prince uf Wales Is
land call themselves Thlinkit. They
speak d rather harsh gGttcral language.
have q decided Mongolian east of face
AMI figure live in permanent settle
nlents just above higE-tid., mark and
build large communal houses. They ar,
divided into tribes or classes. each II
taking some bird or animal for an Il
blem, such as the raven. eagle, brown
bear or whale. Tue members of each
totenlic tribe regard each other rs
brothers and sisters.
The kok-wan-tan trihe is most pow
ertul in nany settlements. and they
hay" either the eagle or the bear for
their badge. Members OF the same
tribe are % permitted to ullrry. An
eagle must marry Il raven. II IL raven
man marries an eagle oula all the
children will belong 10 the mothers
tribe and3will le eagles. The idea ar-
pears to TO keep property privileges
and powe5as mitch in the tGihe az pos
sible, <r}iria man dies has sisters aon
nal SKIP into the lbuse. take his
uncle's place at the IRE. own all the
property and siaferr'. even take his
uncle's wife 81 his own. Sometimes
q lad OF sixteen or seventeen years will
be seen with q wife Of sixty or seventy
years. Tile Old woman will often be
proud of her young husband. It is Il
theory with the Thlinkit that Il young
wife; he is unschoclei i'll the ways Of
trade aud barter, and Of conduct gen-
orally; she will be his constant, per
sistent teacher, drawing always from
her w fund Of observation and cX-
%perience. When an OLD MA marries
lie usually selects as young and beau
tiful Il wife as it is possible for him to
obtain through family influence and
diplomacy.
The woman really enjoys an exalted
position among these people. There is
nearly always mutual consent concern
ing the sale or purchase of any object.
The Thlinkit do not now, and it is
probable that they did. worship
idols. Their religion has been Sham
anism. The sorcerer of shaman is in
their tongue called icht. When he was
born he had L curly lock Of hair, Il s1l-
pernatural sign that he was TO be set
apart to perform the offices Of an icht.
His hair was never cut; he was no 10
eat CLAIMS. crabs. nor any food gathered
upon the beach. and when he grew up
to be n strong ma he n to undergo
an ordeal Of an absolute fast for eight
days, and if he endured he would be
possessed ny L spirit called a yake.
Hereafter this spirit would be more to
him than y Ariel was to Prospero.
Before Or during the fast he made
up a wonderful paraphernalia Of
masks. necklaces. headdresses, rattles.
buckskin aprons and charms carved
out of ivory. bone and horn. each piece
having a deep significance. At the end
Of his fast he gave a performance
around the fire IN one OF the large
communal houses. He would work
himself up to a state Of frenzy aud
violence, whereby the onlookess would
be inspired with q sense of awe and
fear. He was looked upon as the home
and temple of the spirits which had
entered into him. All of his knowledge
and power was hereafter completely
under the control of the familiar. or
yake. Up to the advent Of the mission
aries this power Of the shaman seems
never to have been called in question
nor doubted by any native.
The yake never performs a service
g]ratuitously. 1t is only the well-to-do
who seek the aid of the iclt. If. for
instance, a chief is sick and he sends
for the sarcerer a fee Is rendered, but
usually the yake tells him it is not
enough, for he knows how much pro-
perty the chief has. After the yake is
satisfied with the increase OF the fee
the icht. making careful preparations.
then begins his incarnation to over
come and drive Out the evil spirits or
which are overpowering and
the sick man. These per
are weird in the extreme.
The icht may continue for hours. until
be is exhausted. Ii it is some alb
complaint he may clap the
snni - a f,s.lan,1SIr aa,,-s rAn.,..a