The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-10
FULL MEANING OF HERALDRY
IN SOUTHEASTERN ALASKA.
interesting Data Gathered During An Investigation Extending
Many Years The Hydahs Superior and
Highly Civilized Race.

in . box and taken to the former home
OF the deceased. In certain place, some-
times = small, uninhabited island, q dead
pole was erected. with the totems Of the
deceased carved on 1t. and In cavity In
the hack Of the post the remains were de-
posted; also tho belongings Of the person,
when alive. were buried with his ashes in
the pole. The hole in the cavity was neat
ly covered with slab taken from the
same pole The above described totem pole
in the burial post was called in Hydah
Sat-ling. Quite q number Of the latter
are still standing in various localities Of
Southeastern Alaska, and are considered
the treasure chests Of tho ethnoiogicai col
lector. though ono not acquainted with the
peculiarities OF these totems will never
imagine that they are followed and con-
tain the ashes OF the dead ~ set
We now come to the third class of totem
poles. These illustrate events, legends and
other stories. The carving may bear q
faint resemblance to the ancient picture
writing Of the old Teutons.s Tho native
name for the latter columns IL Ce-at-lang-
lae-ee. and the correct translation of this
into English 10 STORY master" A STORY
master Ii a. much q mystery to the pres
emit native generation as to the white In
habitants.A Tho carvings OF old are prac-
tically the same a. those made at present,
and can easily be recognised a. to what
particular mammal. bird or flsh II meant by
tho general outlines Of the figures repre-
scented, one above the ether, on the long
poles What story they tell. and why such
q pole was erected will forever remain a
mystery. and was probably only known to
the man or family It belonged to- The
natives, on being asked to tell the story
about such . totem pole viii readily do 30.
but the Same story IL never corrobcratsd.
On Prince Of Wales island, in the old
Hydah village, Cassan, there stands q
carved pole, whose height ID nearly Atty
feet and meaa,ires at the base nine feet In
circumference. Tho top figure II the eagle,
the totem Of the great Chief Skwall; next
comes avhgure representing q Russian
saint: the third represents the head Of tho
archangei, st. Michael; the fourth, a Rus
sian bishop and the last two figures the
head of a white man surmounted by an
eagle. This remarkable column was erect
ed by Chief Sywall to commemorate the
event when he and his family were baptized
in the Graeco-Roman church at New Arch
angel the present Sitka. The figures Of
the stints pictured on the above pole were
copied from picture given to Chief Skwall
by the bishop on = visit of the former
to Sitka; also portrait Of the then young
Gear Alexander II. This portrait il now in
the Sheldon Jackson Musuem, Sitka. The
white mans face surmounted by the eagle
represents gentleman who was instru-
Russian church. He afterwards married
his daughter. thereby gaining great wealth.
a large stock of furs being presented to
him by his father-in-law. This man who
died in 1879, was by birth an Austrian, and
hailed from Trieste in Dalmatia. He was
q man with good education, displayed con-
siderable tact and In few years gained
great wealth and was considered one Of
the wealthiest merchants on the coast,
On another pole Of smaller size the eagle
Is represented In the top figure. Next Is
the image Of bear holding in his arms, az
1t were, two whales by their tails while
the bottom figure represents a seal. The
story is told as follows: Two individuals
belonging to the eagle and the bear fam
lilies went out hunting seal. They were
drowned and turned into whales. The old
natives believed, and in fact there are some
at the present day who adhere to the SUI
perstitious belief, that whenever native
perishes at sea he will turn into q whale.
When journeying on the ocean in canoes It
frequently happens that small whales will
follow and play around them. The natives
seeing in these whales their departed
friends will throw fresh water overheard,
thinking to give them drink, as fresh water
cannot be gotten in the ocean, to Quench
their thirst. At one time in Carter bay
small whale became stranded. The ma
tives, noticing 1t, came to the rescue Of the
cetacean by heaving him back In the deep
water with long poles.
Shamanism seems to have been practiced
moderately by the natives, and was prob
ably introduced among them by the Thin
ket tribe but the medicine men exer-
cised no such power over the Hydahs as
they did over the surrounding tribes. The
Hydahs did not have religion, yet these
rude people had a vague idea of a Supreme
Being living in the heavens, and ruling
axxyfI fv1er thAvy pnrr1d oaA An, al
Hydah woman whose ancestors were the
chiefs that ruled on Prince Of Wales is
land as far back as any Of the present gen.
Grafton can remember has this story, and
/ give II to the people word for word. She
began thus:
when was small girl my father and
I went. with a big party to the Nasse river,
and when we came there we were met by
some other people, and father said they
were our friends. After weshad onrY sup
per we all went along the river to fat
place, where there were no trees, and
when we got there all the people TOOK hold
of each Others hands and formed a large
circle. They then let go their hands and
began to dance in their places, turning
round with their faces uplifted to the NOON
lit sky. Their hands, also, they held UP to
heaven the palms up and SO they danced
without singing or uttering- a word until
they fell down on the ground. overcome by
exhaustion"
Why. this dance was given the aged wom-
an could not tell, save that 1t had been an
old custom. From the foregoing one might
think. taking into consideration the tradi-
ton of the flood, that the old Hydaks had
a sort Of religion and practiced religious
rites. hardly think there is a native liv-
ing today who is not baptized in the Chris
tian church or married, II married man,
according to its rites. Our Christian and
modern civilization suits them better than
their old customs. stayed In Saxman,
where there are forty children going to
school, and almost everyone could read and
write. Four years ago there was no school
at that place. The credit is due to Mr. G..
w. Young for their education. The proofs
Of the latter lie in their prosperity and we'll
doing. Y. NJ. l.. BITOUx.
HIS Assignment.