The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-07-28
Kenmore COOPER
IS INDICATED
Alaskan Indians Measure Time
BY Sleeps and Shows
EDUCATION rs LIMITED
Census Enumeration Has Hard Time
Getting Facts in Alaska But He
Finally Found Out All That
He Desired
EDUCATION IS LIMITED

| Washington, July 27.-"Leatherstock-
ing is verified and Fenfmore Cooper vhn-
Dictated, and their substantation comes
as it should, through the census nu-
reau. 1t is from far-away Alaska, bue II
is official This substantiation is found
In a report from Chief Census Agent Nc
Kenzie telling all about the taking OF
the census in the Fairbanks district Mr..
Mckenzie gives assurance that the In
dams do measure time by the ''snows"
and suns and distances by sleeps In
deed, he asserts that they have no other
standards of time or of measurement, and
In relating the fact he cites an instance
of enumerating the red men.
only the very young children, who
have been educated in the government
schools" he says, "have any knowl-
edge OF their ages or births, and the
agents were instructed to use the age
and birth months as nearly as talk and
observation would seem correct. Time
with them is computed on suns and
SHOWS, and distances by sleep. Marriages,
births and deaths are all based upon
such calculations, and we were obliged
| to base our information in the same
way"
Indian Bucks Tale
| He then gives this instance:
! IAN Indian buck claimed to have lived
| 200 SHOWS After much talk and use
of the sign language 1t was determined
that he was about so years old. He was
found to have been twenty SHOWS
old when he got his first woman;
got away; that he got more woman and
keep her five SHOWS and she die,' that he
| got no woman for 20 SHOWS more and
finally that he got young chicken and
keep her all time ever since now on % or
30 SHOWS. "
That there were other difficulties in get
ting the facts regarding the aborigines is
indicated by the following from the re-
port:
Many of the Indians know a suffi-
cient number of English words to do
business with a white man, but when
it was determined that they were to
be counted they had faculty for clos
ing their mouths and knowing nothing
until an interpreter impressed upon
them the fact that the agent came
from the Great White Father at Wash
ington."
Regarding the habits and character
of the people he says:
Indolent and Dirty
LAS a class they are indolent, lazy
and dirty although in recent years the
teachers have taught the younger ones
that dirt has been the cause OF much
of their illness and the present gen.
GRAFTON are keeping themselves health
Ter by bathing. Their homes are filthy
as a rule and conductive to the dis
eases with which the Indians are most
ly afflicted.
They spend their winters in hunt
ing and their summers in fishing Furs
secured, hides of moose and caribou,
are brought to the traders and ex-
changed for food and clothing but sell
dom for money. Out of these hides
they also make moccasins, gloves, nit
tens and other curios which they trade
in the same way. The fish caught in
the summer are dried and used for
food for themselves and their dogs
during the winter.
THE Indians have no knowledge OF
their tribal or clan names and are
always called by their village or local
| ity name. The Indians in the vicinity
of Chandlar river are called 'Chandlar
Indians. The same is true of the Che
ma, Salcha, Tansna, Mansfield Circle,
| tribes. etc. The missionaries and the
bureau of education have determined.
however, that all of the Indians In the
Interior of Alaska are Atha bascan
Knaiokohotana, with the exception of
| those In the Koyakuk district, which
Iare Athaha n X ova lx oh fapo