Evening star., 1923-05-13
Fall of Totem Pole Carries
Rare Carving of Red Me1,
Smithsonian Expert
Finds Alaskan
Rurities.
Worship of Birds
and Beasts.

) To the land of the raven and eagle
the strange white fathers came.
Out of the mists in the days of the
long sunshine they emerged-pale
men in black robes, bearded men with
golden crucifxes about their necks.
To the children of the bear. the
beaver and the thunderbird of the
seas they came bringing new Gods
and the old Gods of the pine forests
retreated before them into the white
, night of the Arctic.
And when the priests of the new
Gods told the children of the old
the simple forest people were anger
, ed
And one smart young chap. educated
) somewhat beyond his Intelligence in
the ways of the white men chopped
down with an axe one of the finest
) collections of totem poles in all Alas
> ka, sawed them into blocks, and built
: sidewalk with them.
a Culture OF Red Men.
. About the same time the rest of
; his people began to forget how to
: carve-perhaps the finest art master
! ed by the American Indians.
. So has past this culture of the red
= man. 1T would be a pity to discuss
. some of the wretched things built
. in late years." says the report to the
. Smithsonian Institute on the latest
; Alaskan expedition.
Realizing that the mythology OF
= old Alaska has been disappearing
: rapidly ever since the first priests
. of the czar came. the institute last
. year sent special investigator, DR..
, T. T. Waterman, to study remains of
the native villages in southeastern
, Alaska. DR.. Watermans report. which
8 has just been made public, contains
some of the most interesting material
: concerning the early life of the saw
. ages which has been available to STU
" dents.
.. The early people. the report states.
; were most truly children of the great
= brown bear, of the raven, of the bea-
. yer. They were divided into clans.
each under the special protection of
. some bird, beast or fish, The figure
y on the totem pole in front CT one of
: the huts denotes the special creature
! to which the ancestors of the present
= tribesmen paid allegiance.
|. Otherwise Portrayed.
. Not only on the totem pole, but
, upon all the family utensils and tools
. was this hereditary progenitor and
|. protector portrayed. The names of
. individuals were all suggested by
some characteristic of the family god.
. his totem shows, bore the picturesque
|. name of g-each-other-as-
. dogs" referring to the fact that when
raven dies the other ravens pull
. the body about. Another's calling card
might have carried the name stink
, ing Nation" referring to the ia It
that the ravens nest has bad odor.
: Upon the totem poles can be read
the outlines of many beautiful old
tales of forest mythology. Only the
old Indians can read them. however.
1t requires great deal OF special
erudition to interpret the carvings.
; The animal may be represented in
: either human or animal form. y bear
for example, when entering his den,
. takes off his bear skin and hangs 1t
up. For, in the faith of the forest
children. he was just Il bear when he
roamed the woods. Back in the bosom
of his family, with Mrs. Bear and
the kids, he was man again. And
when portraying a man of the bear
family the native sculptor was more