Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1940-09-20
i'm Fur Trade of Northwest
Left impress ON Indian Nomenclature

made a good provision stop for these
tranS-Pacific traders.
The first Hawaiian to make the
voyage to the mainland was Tianna.
a chieftain. He was giant of a man
and landed from trading ship at
Prince William sound in 1873. The cap
tain Of the ship has left description
of the meeting of Tianna and Maquin-
ma, an Indian chief. Maquinna was
short man and Tianna looked down
upon him as king looking upon a
slave and his expression revealed that
he found Maquinna a revolving crea-
ture. The two thoroughly disllked each
other.
One English trader had a scheme
worked out for settling 40 Cinnamon
in a permanent trading post On the
northwest coast and part OF the plan
was to provide the Chinese with
Hawaiian wives. Ships were actually
sent to bring the Chinese and Hawaii
ans TO America for this curious project
but the vessels were seized by Spanish
warshipS before the plan could be car
ried out.
"Tonquin" Brought First Group
The first large group of Hawaiians
to come to America as workers was
brought in the Tonquin, which car
expedition to the mouth of the Co.
lumbia in 1911. The Tonquin stopped
at the Hawaiian islands for provisions
and while there the captain made a
| treaty with kamehamena to secure
the services of "a natives as fort build
ers. Each worker taken under this deal
was to receive food, clothing and SlOC
for three years of work. The Hawaii
ans who were signed up died with
the crew Of the Tonquin when indians
attacked the ship not long after il
landed on the northwest coast.
The Aston company brought second
group of Hawaiians TO America in 1873
They proved themselves trustworthy
workers and were soon assigned the
trading expeditions into the interior
Several Hawaiian workers accompa-
MED party into what IS now western
Montana in 1919.
More islanders joined the fur trade
each year and in 1877 one ship brought
a company of go natives. There i
record Of few Hawaiian women having
made the voyage to America. RoberI
Carlton Clark says: These Hawaiian
contract laborers were among almos
all the company'S crews and force!
which were engaged in the fur trade
from New Caledonia to the Sacramento
valley and from the Rocky mountain:
TO the Pacific. Their health was otter
impaired by the damp and, for them
SSAu S4AAlAaNS. &s4a44y N4NA S4A Liz 4O44t
voyage which sometimes carried then
to China before they reached Oregon
Their services, however, were valuable
and much appreciated by their EN-
ployerS. A crew of them manned thu
Dolly, schooner that was sent ou
from Astoria to meet ships coming ul
the Columbia. They were expert mi
men. Todd, when seeking a site fo1
new Sawmill in the Nisqually cOun
try, took with him two Hawailans a!
expert advisors. . . The Hawaiian!
went out with almost every hunting
and trading expedition. Tney accom-
panied Ogden or Work to the Snak'
river country and on trips that tool
them to the Humboldt river country
They were with Work ana other tra4'
ers who led the expedition to tn,
Umpqua and California. On such trip
they proved superior hunters as the!
were able TO bring in game when 9th
ers had failed. They could also &C
as boatmen when needed"
Were Good-Natured
The Hawaiians were jolly, good
natured people and were the prank
sters of the trading posts. Paul Kane
the English-Canadian artist whit
traversed the continent in the l84Os
has mentioned the Hawaiians in hi
journal of the trip. He tells of tn
singing, dancing and general fun
, making with which they amused thel