Haida stories and beliefs [microform]

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ox TttE ETHNOLOGICAL StJRVEY OF CANADA. 5

mentioned amount ; also that a further grant of •'>0^ may be accorded to
it in aid of its investigations, which promise to be <>£ increased importance
and value during the ensuing year.

APPENDIX I.
llaiiia Stories aitd BeliejH. By C. HiLL-ToUT.

Coumvffonica/ M'fth and Story of the Orif/in of the Haida Peojtle.

In the remote past Sha-Zdnd ruled in his kingdom in the grey clouds that
overshadowed the vast deep. All below was a dark and watery waste.
At this time Yef/fh, the Raven, was the chief servant of Sha-l&n&. One
day Yetlth ventured to interfere with the conduct of affairs in Cloudland,
and was cast forth into the outer world. The Raven flew back and fore
over the deep until he became weary. He grew angry at finding no place
where he could rest, and beat the water with his wings till it flew up into
the clouds on either side of him ; and when it fell back again it wr*s
transformed into rocks, upon which he rested himself. These rocks grow
and extended themselves on every side until they reached from North
Island to Cape 8t. James. Later these rocks became changed into sand,
upon which a few trees eventually sprang up and grew, and thus were the
Queen Charlotte Islands brought into existence. The Raven now desired
someone to assist him in his kingdom, so one day he piled up on the
beach two laige heaps of clam-shells near by the present site of 8isk, and
then transformed them into human beings, whom he made his slaves.
They were both of the same sex and female. In a short time these two
slaves became dissatisfied with their condition, and complained to their
creator, the Raven, that he had mismanaged aflairs in making them both
of the same sex. The Raven listened in anger to their complaints, but
finally altered their condition notwithstanding, and changed one of them
into a man, by casting limpet-shells at her. Thus were the progenitors of
the Haidas created. The Raven, growing weary of his lonely life, took the
woman for his wife, but as she bore him no children he wearied of her and
sent her and the man to a spot now called Skidegate. Wearying of his
loneliness once more, he (ietermined to revisit his former home in Cloud-
land and secure, if possible, a l)eautiful wife from among the daughters of
the heavenly chiefs. One bright summer morning he sttirted off on his
long journey. He soared upward over the lonely sea until the land he
had created appeared to him to be a small mosquito. At last he came to
the walls of heaven. He concealed himself until the evening, and then,
assuming the form of a bear, scratched a hole in the wall, and thus mt ' ^
his entrance into his former home. The place had greatly changed since
he had been an inhabitant there, and consequently he took time to con -
sider everything that he saw, so as to form a similar kingdom on his return
to earth. There he found that everyone was considered a god or chief,
and all were submissive to the Chief of Light, who still held su^>reme
power as of old. He also found that the Great Chief had divided his
kingdom into villages and towns, into lands and seas, and had created
a moon and stars, and made a great luminary to rule over all, which
was called Jine the Sun. At last he was caught by the hunters of the
King and brought into his presence. As the Raven appeared to be a

6

REPOBT — 1898.

beautiful and tame bear, he was kept as a playmate for the King's
youngest son. He now spent three years in intimate relationship with
the royal family, and had sutHcient time to make careful and necessary
observation prior to his descent to the lower world. It was customary
for the children in the Land of Light to disguise and transform themselves
into bears, seals, and birds. Now it so happened that the Raven, under
his disguise of bear, was strolling on the beach one evening, looking for his
supper of clams, when he espied three other bears approaching him. He
knew at once they were children of a great chief, and, instantly transform-
ing himself into a large eagle, stole the sun, which happened to be setting
at the time, also the tire- stick that was used to kindle the fires, and flew
over the walls of heaven with one under each wing, together with one of
the three children. When the people found that the sun had been stolen
they reported the matter at once to the King. He then ordered his land
to be searched, and if they found the thief to throw him down to Uet-gwau-
larMf the chief or ruler of the lower regions. But a messenger arriving,
who stated that he had seen a large bird flying over the walls of their
city with the sun under his wing, at once all gave chase, and the Raven
was followed. In his flight from his pursuers he dropped the child, who
fell down through the clouds into the sea close to the Raven's kingdom.
The Raven also descended, bearing with him the sun and the fire-stick in
safety to the earth. When the child fell into the sea he cried aloud for
assistance, and immediately the little fishes came in a great shoal to his
aid and carried him on their backs safely to the shore. These fish are
very numerous around Rose-spit at the present day, and their forms, say
the Haida, have remained dinted in the blue clay of that district from the
day when they bore the heaven-born child ashore until now. The great
chief was a lover of peace, and consequently did not allow his followers to
pursue the Raven down to the earth, as Chief Het-gwau-lana might then
be tempted to enter heaven and give them perpetual trouble. So the
Raven was unmolested, and another sun was created in heaven by the
Great Ruler, who loved light and hated darkness.

Now the Raven thought that he had secured a chief's daughter, but
the child turned out to be a chiefs son. The Raven loved him exceed-
ingly, and built a house at Rose-spit especially for the accommodation of
the child and the sun. The child grew to be very powerful, and had
command over all animals, fish, and birds. Whenever he called to the
fish they would at once appear and bear him out to sea. Whenever he
wished to fly through the air he would call to the birds. They would at
once come to bear him wherever he wished to go on their wings. The
bears and other animals attended to his daily wants, and supplied him
with salmon and berries. The animals, birds, and fish were created by
the Raven for the sole benefit of this heaven-born child. The Raven also
kept the sun and fire-stick in a very strong and secure room, as he was
afraid that his two former slaves would return and steal them. Presently
the slave-wife of the Raven returned, and begged to be re-admitted into
the Raven's society. The request was granted, and she became once
more the mistress of the Raven's household. She took a great interest in
the child, and attended to his every wish. In course of time the child
grew to be a handsome young man, and began to love the woman. She
returned hia love, and at last resolved to become his wife. The Raven
soon found that they were living as man and wife, and he became very
angry, and threatened to kill the woman. This treatment caused th*

ON THE ETHNOLOGICAL SURVEY OV CANADA. 7

pair to escape from the house and hide themsehes in the bush. When
they fled from the Raven's house they carried with them a large cedar
box, in which the sun and the f 3-8tick were placed. Day after day, and
month after month, they wandered southward without proper nourish-
ment, and in great fear of the Raven. They also carried with them the
box containing the sun and the fire-stick. One evening, faint and weary,
they sat down near a little creek, and the woman, being very hungry,
wept bitterly. Her husband walked a little distance up the stream, and
at last found a dead land- otter, but they could not eat it, as they had no
fire with which to cook it. On the following morning they remembered
that they had the fire -stick in the box they were carrying. They at once
determined to see if they could produce a tire with it. Tliey were
successful, and soon had a good tire, with which they cooked the otter.
Having made a hearty meal, they proceeded on their way. When they
reached Cape Ball they were hungry again, whereupon the youth began
to sing one of the songs taught him in heaven, and the sea receded four
miles from the shore, leaving a great whale stranded on the beach. The
youth surrounded the whale with a circle of stones and rocks so that it
should not escape. This circle of boulders is said to exist to-day. The
runaway couple lived on whale flesh until they reached the channel
which divides Graham and Moresby Islands, where they settled and built
a house. On this spot the village of Skidegate afterwards sprang up.
Here they lived for several years in peace and prosperity, and a daughter
was born to them, which caused them great joy. In course of time the
daughter grew to womanhood, and was an exceedingly beautiful woman,
and they would have all been perfectly happy but that there was no
prospect of a husband for the maiden.

Year after year passed by, and they had given up all hopes of a
husband for their daughter, when one day there came frorn the North
Islard, around the west coast, the Raven's male-slave, whom he had
made on the beach at Sisk. This forlorn creature now desired the
parents to give him their daughter to wife. The father indignantly
refused his request, and became very angry at what he considered a great
piece of impudence on the part of a clam-shell-made man. How could
such a being as he look to wed with the daughter of a heaven-born chief I
But the slave was not to be so easily repulsed. He betook himself to the
woods surrounding the house, and whenever the father was away would
go and talk with the mother. She regarded him as her brother, seeing
that they had been created together, and told him all her secrets, and
even went so far as to tell him where her husband kept the chest con-
taining the sun which he had stolen from the Raven's house at Rose-spit.

This treasure was stored away in a strongly built house in the woods,
where the heaven-born man would frequently go to pray to the gods in
the Kingdom of Light. The woman was not wise in thus divulging the
whereabouts of her husband's precious treasure ; for the slave, on asking
a second time for the maiden, and receiving a good kicking from her
father,' went away in great wrath, vowing that he would be revenged.
As soon as night fell, having watched the chief retire to rest, he betook

' It is interesting to note in this connection that the heaven-born man
thought nothing of taking the slave for his wife, but was much incensed at the idea
of his daughter becoming the wife of a slave. We see t hat the same notions pre-
vailed among the Haidas generally, for although a chief could marry any of hi»
female slaveB, no slave could marry a free-born woman under pain of death

3fee

8

REPORT— 1898.

himself to the treasure-house, and easily entered it through the smoke-
hole. He then seized a olnb that he found on the floor, and smashed th«>
box to pieces, taking care not to injure the sun. When he had wrought
this havoc he began to ponder upon his miserable lot in life, and presently,
l>ecoming enraged at his ill-fortune, threw down the sun and kicked it to
pitices. But the broken parts, instead of falling to the ground, leaped
up into the sky, the largest piece becoming a sun, the next biggest a
moon, and the other pieces stars. Thus were created the Haida sun and
moon and stars, according to the traditions of the ancients.

When the wretched slave became calm once more he speedily realised
the danger he now stood in at the hands of the heaven-bom man. So
before dawn of the following morning he was well on his way to his former
abode at North Island. He travelled only by night, hiding himself in the
forest during the day, thus avoiding the keen eyes of the Raven and a
meeting with his sister's husband. At last he reached home, and for days
he sat brooding over his cruel lot until the happy thought struck him that he
should do as the Raven had done and go and seek a wife for himself from
among the daughters of heaven. But the difficulty was how to get there.
This he overcame in the following manner. Taking his bow and arrows
in bis hand one moonlight night he shot an arrow at the moon, which
embedded itself in that luminary's face ; he then shot another into the
notch of the tirst and another into the notch of this again, and so on until
he had a line of arrows reaching from the moon to the earth. But all
this was not accomplished in one night. According to one tradition he
took 364 nights over his task, which later were lengthened into 364 days
and nights, which number just makes up the Haida year of 1 3 months of
28 days each. They account for the discrepancy between their year of
364 days and ours of 365 by saying that the slave occupied one day in
climbing the arrow ladder, which has been left out of their reckoning.
When the slave had completed the ladder he lost no time in climbing up
it into heaven. He arrived there early in the morning, and the first thing
that he saw was a beautiful woman swimming in a lake of crystal. He
stealthily approached the side where she seemed likely to step ashore
after her swim to await her. She presently swam in his direction, and no
sooner had she put her foot upon the beach than he seized and dropped
with her through the clouds into the sea close by the shore of North
Island. As they descended the Raven happened to be flying near the
spot, and perceiving something unusual in the air above him watched to
see what it was. At first he thought it to be a pair of large eagles, but
presently discovered it to be his slave and a beautiful heaven-born woman.
No sooner had the slave led his prize into the house than the Raven
appeared and demanded that the woman should be given over to him.
The slave declining to comply with the request, the Raven became angry,
seized the woman, and transformed the man into an invisible spirit and
drove him away from his presence for ever. Furthermore, he cursed him
and bade him wander over the land and take upon himself the task of
caring for the growth and development of every living thing the Raven
had created.

Thus the Wanderer, as the slave is now termed by the Haidas, is
always busily engaged causing the berries and roots to grow for the
bupport of the people. Every plant, flower, and tree is under his control,
and thus it is that Haida-land produces the finest trees for canoes through-
out the whole northern region. At the present time the Haidas

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ON THE ETHNOLO(iICAl. SURVEY OF CANADA.

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believe that he is fulfilling his destiny, and they think of him with
gratitude and offer him saci-iHces of berries, roots, salmon, and boar-greai^i.
These they place in hollow trees that he may eat when ho feels hungry.
They believe that he wanders upon the earth night and day, and will
continue to do so until the end of time, when the Raven will recall him.
But woe to the Haidas when this takes place ; for the trees and plants,
the fish and animals, the fowls (jf the air, and even the very land itself
will pass away and cease to be, and then will their own end come.

HaitUt Moon Stories.

In early times the Haida moon met with several misadventures, but
as every tribe had a tribal moon of its own the consequences were not so
serious as they would otherwise have been. When the Raven was in the
' Land of Light ' he saw that each tribe there had a separate moon, and
he adopted the same plan for the Haidas. The principal moon of the
race is that derived from the large splinter kicked off the sun by the
'clam-shell' man in his anger at being refused the hand of the heaven-
born man's daughter for wife, as related in the cosmogonical lore of the
Haidas. The beaver once ate up the moon of the Masset tribe, and
the Raven had to supply another. The sun once chased the moon up the
Naas River into the interior of the mainland, where she could find no food.
About spring-time, being desperately hungry, she demanded food from her
worshippers, who produced the ' candle-fish,' or tdakan, which were made
to run up the river in great numbers for the purpose. To offset this the
sun's worshippers produced the salmon to eat up the ulakans, and it was
only at the intervention of the * Wanderer,' who fought the salmon, that
the little fish were rescued.

The moon is not to be insulted with impunity. Once a naughty boy
was sent to gather sticks for the fire, but did not want to go, urging that
it was dark. His father made him go, telling him that the moon would
presently rise and there would be plenty of light. The lad went and
stood on the seashore to wait for the moon to rise. As it appeared above
the horizon he mocked it by putting his fingers to his nose. Presently a
giant came down from the moon and snatched up the boy, and he may
now be seen on clear nights in the moon with a bundle of sticks over
his shoulder.

Ntlakapaimiq Moon Story. — With the above may be compared the
belief of the Thompson Indians.

Once there was an old woman who was very meddlesome and interfer-
ing. She was perpetually making mischief in the village. The people
endured her as long as they could, but at last determined they could
stand her no longer. They agreed to seek a new settlement and leave
her behind. So each family got out their canoes, and loaded them with
all their belongings and paddled away. As each left, the old woman
begged to be taken on board, but was told that the canoe was too full
already, that the next boat would be best for her. They all made the
same excuse, and presently the last canoe passed her and she was left
behind. As she sat bewailing her lot the moon rose, and she called to it
to have compassion on her. The moon came down almost to the ground
to see what the old woman was wailing about, and she, seizing the
opportunity, leaped up into it and was carried up into the sky. In her
hand as she leaped she held a little birch-bark bucket, and on clear nights
she can still be seen in the moon with her little bucket in her hand.

h5— 3

10

REPORT— 1898.

Jltiida lielieftf dc.

Frog. — Among the Haidas the frog is regarded as the embodiment of
wisdom, whence the medicine-man obtains gifts from his favourite spirits.

Marriage Customs. — When a man fancied a girl for his wife he went
to her uncle, the brother of her mother (who alone has any voice in the
matter), and make overtures to him by means of presents. The uncle
being willing, the man then makes known his wishes to the young
woman. She thereupon procures the assistance of her companions and
prepares for the ceremony. When she is ready the man goes to her
dwelling, a great feast is then made to which friends of both parties aro
invited, and during the course of the feast he rises and claims her as his
wife in the presence of all assembled. On the following day she and her
friends go to his house, when a second feast is made, after which they are
regarded as man and wife.

Weasel Belief.

The weasel causes great alarm and fear among the Haidas. He is the
heart-eater and man- slayer. He is supposed to enter the dwellings
stealthily at night and pass into the man's interior through the fundament.
The weasel then feeds upon the man's heart and he shortly dies. This
happens to those who do not honour the BAven by doffing their caps when
a bird of this species flies over heads.

TJ^e Myth of Tou; or, the Little Mountain and the Spider.

On the shores of Masset Inlet a long time ago lived two little
mountains. One was a good mountain and the other was not. The good
mountain was satisfied with his lot, with his food of hair-seal and halibut,
was blessed with a good digestion, and an even temper. The bad brother
Tou wanted dog-fish, and grumbled and growled all the time because the
chief of the waters would not let him have his sister's rations as well as
his own. At last he determined to change his place of abode, and one
moonlight night he set out on his journey. He travelled fifty miles,
tearing up the ground and making a dreadful noise as he went, and finally
pulled up on the Northern Coast near Rose- spit, where the dog-fish
abound. Here he stayed, and his walls of black basalt now tower 200 or
300 feet above the shore. He now gets all the dogfish he desires, but
still he is not satisfied. A large spider lives in the clouds over his head,
which makes itself very disagreeable to him by pulling his hair and
screaming and howling in his ears.

This spider caused much disquietude among the Haidas themselves
also. No one would venture to go to sleep near its abode. But once a
Haida warrior determined to seek out the spider and fight with it. So he
took a barbed spear, a wooden drum, and a big whistle and went to seek
the enemy. He made such a din with his drum and whistle that the
spider came down to see what was the matter. When the spider perceived
the man he came at him open-mouthed, screaming and growling the while.
The warrior thrust his spear into the terrible creature's jaws, which
stopped its noise and prevented it from closing its mouth. To the spear
was attached a long cord, with which the man now tethered the spider to a
tree so that it could not get away. The spider finding itself fast grew
terribly angry, and began to break up the mountain, and hurled large
masses of it at the warrior, who had much ado to avoid them. At last

ON THE KTHNOI.<MiH Al. HCRVEY OF CANADA.

11

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the spider succumbed to )iung<i- iind died ; and its body was then cut into
extremely small pieces by thr friiutlo relatives of the warrior. But though
the spider no longer troublew 'i'oii. lie has not ceased to grumble yet.

Ti,hl Wave Mifth».

The tidal waves are beli»'Vf(l by tin; Haidas to l)e caused by three
sisters who dwell (m the \V«'8i ( oast. When they are annoyed in any
way they revenge themselves by raising these great waves and smashing
the canoes of the Haidas and drnwning their occupants. The devil-doctor
is the only intermediary betwrni the sisters and the people, and his
services must be well paid for b«f..re he acts.

THchtmoae Myth.

The Haidas belief in the *\istence of a fearful man-eating monster,
who lives half in and half <»ut of the sea. This dreadful being is seen
once in about fifteen years, and his appearance presages a time of famine
or pestilence and sickness.

The Kill,' I- whale Myth.

When a Haida is drowned it is believed that his spirit is translated to
the body of a Killer-whale. Tlie»e whales were therefore formerly much
honoured, and never killed by the Haidas. The appearance of one of
them off the shore in front of an Indian's dwelling is always regarded as a
' call ' to some member of the household, who will shortly meet with hi*
death by drowning.

Liiml-t)tter Myth.

The Haidas believe that the land-otter has the power to enchant men.
He meets hunters and wanderers in the forest in the guise of a beautiful
maiden, who says to the victim, • Come and sit down with me.' The wise
man is able to detect the enchantress by the pronunciation of the words
she uses, and so escapes her cl)arms. The unwary, yielding to her wiles,
become her slaves, or are found wandering in the woods bereft of their
senses. She is also supposed sometimes to place certain leaves which have
magical qualities in the springs fifijuented by the people. Hence, before
taking a drink the Haida first throws a little water over the right
shoulder, saying at the same tinif, • Land-otter, land-otter, go from me ! '

The Thiinder-efiglf Myth,

This widespread myth is found also among the Haidas. They regard
the thunder-eagle as their deadliest foe. They suppose that he dwells as
a lonely god among the most awful recesses of the mountair.s, and that
when he is hungry he robes himself in eagle form and swoops down upon
the land, darkening it with the shadow of his widespread v ings, wliose
motions give rise to the thuiidet. Tlie lightning is supposed t<» come
from the tongue of a fish whioli the thunder-eagle carries under his
pinions.

Till- Moune Myth.

This myth of the mouse is nn.- of the most firmly implanted in the
minds of the Haidas. It entt^rs very intimately into their lives. The
younger members are beginning *:o laugh at the notions connected with it
now, but their elders still firmly holieve in them. To them the harmless

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12

REPORT — 1898.

little rodent is a veritable deiiiou. They ))elieve that its home is the
stomach )f human beings, and that every person has one or more of them
in his stomach. If h person is bad-tempered, immoral, passionate, a liar,
thief, tbc, they attribute these qualities in him to the mice-demons in his
stomach. Again, if a person is taken ill, his father turns all his goods and
belongings out of d(K>rs ; he next proceeds to catch a mouse. Having
secured one, he puts it into a small box and gives it plenty of grease to
eat. He abstains himself from all food for three days. Each morning he
takes the box and mouse down to the sea and drinks about a quart of salt
water. He then returns and throws himself on his bed, places the box
containing the mouse under his pillow, and goes to sleep. He sleeps
throughout the day and following night, sentinels being placed about the
house to prevent anyone from disturbing him or making a noise. In the
morning no rises, goes down to the beach, drinks his quart of salt water,
and returns to sleep till the following morning. He keeps this up for
three successive days. If during this while he imagines or dreams that
a person or spirit from the invisible world has appeared and revealed to
him the name of the individual responsible for his son's illness, he straight-
way rises and goes to this individual and charges him with the act, and
demands his reasc i for attacking his son in this manner. If, however,
no vision or dream comes to him, after the third day has passed he takes
the mouse in his hand and goes into every house in the place, and holds
the mouse in front of each person until he is satisfied that he has found
the individual guilty of the offence. If the mouse nods its head twice
before anyone, it is to the Haidas plain proof that the culprit is revealed.
In the older days this person would be found dead in the woods a little
while after.

If one of these harmless little creatures has scampered over any food
the Haidas would never think of eating it. They believe it is then im-
pregnated with poison. It is all thrown into a fire and consumed.

Cloud Myth.

When the clouds hang low the Haidas believe that a soul is being
snatched away, and expect to see one of their number shortly die.

Transmigration of Soul,

The Haidas believe in the transmigration of souls in this way : If, when
a person dies, the nearest female relative of the deceased is about to be
delivereil of a child, the soul of the deceased will pass into the body of the
new-born infant and live again.

Specimens of Songs of the Haida.

Berry Sony.

Whit squate, squate, whit squate squate

A la whit, a la whit :
Kalunga olthe, kalunga olthe
Siamzi whe, siamzi whe whit.
The above is an invocation to a bird called the 'whit,' which is sup-
posed to ripen the berries. It is besought to bring many large and nicely
coloured ones.

ON THE ETHNOLOGICAL SlIRVEV Of CANADA.

13

Uidiiuh- Song.

Y«lthgow«8u kiiigung

Laou wangung, laou shugung
Laou iching, laou iching

Laou kanga ? Uou kanga ?
Yolthgowasu kiiigun.

y'm»w/rt<ioH.— NoTK. -Yelthgowjisu in u mans name.

Yplthgowas sees it,

He does it, ho gays it,

He it is, he it is ;
Did he see it ? did h«' sou it ?

Yelthgowas saw it.

/>f nV Dnctor'n .Son,, to thf Spirit nf tho S'orth IVind.
Ada adda di whi silthliga adi ^wurlakoustloga
Dikwun kwul dungalthda^'if alskid ada hi hi hi p.

lyittn tn th,- Kuy Wind.

Oh, hi a a, oh hi a <i ohi a a a a

Kaike kona ' th a a a
A skidje a dung a thu kn^.valgudied ^ '

Kalke kona kish a, - a ho.

NoTii. - • Skidje ' is the daughter of the nii.sl and east wind, but has now
become a diver on acx'ount of her povertv She and her father, the east
wind, are mvoked to cause fair weather and keep nfj' snow and ice.

Wind Song.

r>i whiskada gwe he he
Di whiskada gwe he he
Hangi kwungust, di whiskada agwi.

Translation of afiovp.
The wind is whistling to me,
The wind is whistling to me,
The wind is blowing boisterously in my face.

Specimen of Haida Srpitax.
Itil kwogada daha itil Aupguans,
(Us love you our Father great :)
Altsulth heth il istaiang kit unga,
(Therefore down he sent son his ;)
Jesus Christ nung alth etil kaginsh is,
(Jesus Christ he our vSax'iour is ;)
Altsulth Jesus itil hagunan kwotalang,
(Tbei-efore Jesus us for died.)

I am indebted to the Rev. Mr. Harrison for information f.n the Haidas.

.uk.

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iifcpoRT— 1898.

APPENDIX II.

Customs mid Habits nf Earl lent Satthrs of Canada.
By Benjamin Sultk.

It is intemled in this paper to explain the mode of living of the
explorers, and afterwards of the first settlers on the shores of the
St. lijiwrence, as well as the moditications they introduced in their customs,
habits, itc, in order to conform themselves to the requirements of the new
country. There are two phases to be examined in connection with this :
from 1535 to 1G31, and from 1632 to 1660 or thereabout.

Let us follow, first, the explorers of Eastern Canada, and see who
they were, how they acted in regard to climate, dress, and food. The men
of Cartier and Roberval (1535-44) were all Bretons and unaccustomed
to residence elsewhere than at home in Brittany. The result was that
most of them perished by the effect of cold, bad nourishment, disease, and
despair, whilst the present French Canadian would not experience any
hardship were he to find himself in the same situation.

When Champlain (1604 30) describes the miseries of life in Acadia
and the lower St. Lawrence, he merely states for our information that his
men and himself had acquired very little knowledge in that sense above
that of previous explorers. They still persisted in depending upon the
provisions brought from France — salt pork, beans, flour, mostly affected
by the influence of weather, time, &c., and not always abundant enough
to cover the period at the end of which a fresh supply would be sent. It
was considered good fortune when one or two of the men could handle a
gun and shoot some game. As for the art of fishing, nobody seems to
have known anything of it, and these people starved alongside of a world
of plenty, since they had the rivers, and lakes, and the forests lying all
around their miserable camps.

The only superiority of the Champlain men over the crew of Cartier
consisted in the building of a house or two, but even at this they showed
a rather poor conception of comfort. Chauvin, in 1599, went to Tadoussac
and left there sixteen of his followers to winter, without the elementary
precautions of providing them with eatables and warm quarters. In the
spring of 1600 the place was found empty, and none of the men are men-
tioned afterwards. The Indians had always been friendly to them, but
could not take such inexperienced folks to the woods. The same thing
happened to De Monts (1604 »5) in Acadia, when nearly all his party died
of scorbutic disease and want of food during the rough season. Champ-
lain, who knew these facts recorded from the years of Cartier, did not
succeed any better in 1608, when lie lost twenty men out of twenty-eight.
This was repeated yearly afterwards, but in smaller proportions.

Even as late as 1627 the 'winter residents ' of Quebec were ignorant
of the advantage of cutting trees during the summer in order to prepare
dry fuel for the October- April season. It was Pontgravd who advised
them to do so, and no doubt they recognised it was a great forethought.
They used to pick up whatever the wind would blow down of branches in
the forest, and if that material proved insufficient on extremely cold days,
then they tried their hands at felling some trees near by and supplying
them in blocks to the steward's room. No wonder that the writings of
the period in question so often complained of the evil of smoke and the

ON THK KTHNOLOGICAl- SURVEY OF CANADA.

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small quantity of heat produced by the burning of such green wood.
Stoves being unknown to the hiviniantx in Canada, a caboose supplied
the place of that indispensable adjustment, and the men, unoccupied moat
of the time, slept around it, starved there, got sick and died on the spot,
one after tho other, as a matter of course. Father Biard, evidently ahead
of his generation, once made the remark that an iron box (a stove) such
as used in Germany was preferable by far to the poisonous system of
caboose. The improvement made by Champlain in his house at Quebec
consisted in substituting an ordinaiy chinniey for the open fireplace alwve
alluded to. Tt is likely that Louis Hebert in 1(»17, and Guillaume Couil-
lard about 1620, built similar smoke-escapes in their homes; they also
had the good sense to fit doo?' and window sashes so as both to close her-
metically and open easily when required. The.se marvels were not to be
surpassed for a long while after that.

The equipment provided for the men of Cartier, Roberval, Chauvin,
De Monts, and Champlain was not generally suitable in Canada. Slouch
felt hats are not equal to fur caps in winter ; boots and shoes of European
fabrics could not compete with the moccasins ; and as for overcoats, it
may be said they were not fit for the climate. Gloves, trousers, and under-
clothes adapted to the exigencies of 30' below zero constituted a puzzle
for these people. Snowshoes and mitts were doubtless adopted at an
early date from the Indians.

Tt was well known throughout France that Canada was a purgatory
for civilised people, and would never be settled by Christians.

Building houses was not customary in Quebec until 1632, because the
men (all without families) were located for the winter in what was called
the fort. As it was not intended to increase the colony, no carpenter was
needed for other purposes than to keep the ships in repair.

This awkward situation remained the same during twenty-six years.
What was the cause of it ? Simply this : the men for Canada were
recruited from the working classes (if not of the worat), through the
suburbs of large cities and towns, the very individuals who were the least fit
for the trials to be met in a wild country. For instance, a shoemaker is
not called upon to find his daily bread and meat by sowing wheat, plant-
ing vegetables, or hunting and fishing. Those men do not know how to
manufacture clothing or to dress themselves appropriately ; neither can
they prepare beavei- or other skins to make a soft and warm garment.
Their ' coaling ' power was also limited, for the wood standing in the
forest was for them a foreign product, accustomed as they were ' a receive
their fuel all cut up and dry at the door of their homes. Necessity, it is
said, is the mother of invention ; but this only applies to people who
already live by inventions, such as poor country folks — not the ' citizens '
who depend upon the shops in their stieet. Furthermore, those who
came to Canada * took no stock ' in the future of the country, and they
returned to France (when not buried here) in haste, without having had
time to learn much. The fur companies did not ask them to become
Canadians. They had no reason to turn a new leaf and devise a means
of life so completely different from their habits and aspirations.

Now we will close this unfortunate period by saying that about twelve
or fifteen of the youngest men, still employed in the neighbourhood of
Quebec in 1631, were merged into the subsequent immigration and
became equally competent with that new formation, i.e., the actual
settlers. This little squad, strange to say, was all from Normandy, and