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UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON PUBLICATIONS

POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCE
Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 1-67, pis. 1-8, 15 text figures June, 1920

THE WHALING EQUIPMENT OF
THE MAKAH INDIANS

by
T. T. WATERMAN

SEATTLE, WASH.
PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY

1920

CONTENTS

Page

Introduction 4

Alphabet ustd in rtcording Indian words 5

The "Chinook" Canoe 9

The name "Chinook" 9

Comparison with the canoes of other j)arts of the Pacific coast 10

"Rating" of canoes 12

The hull 1 i

Features of the luill described bv jjrevious writers 1 i

Additional notes on the hull 16

]5ow and stern pieces 16

Shape of the hull 19

Interior fittings 20

Care of the Indl 22

Ornamentation 22

Sails and rigging 23

Features of the rigging described by ])revious writers 23

Additional notes on rigging 21

Defects of the canoe 26

Paddles 26

Information contained in previous accounts 26

Additional notes on the paddle 27

The Canoe-bailer 27

The WiiALiNJi H \nPoox \nd Its Accessory Devices 29

The liarpoon shaft 29

Information contained in previous accounts 29

Additional notes on the harpoon shaft 29

The harpoon licad 30

Information contained in jirevious accounts 30

Additional notes on the harpoon head 31

The whaling lanyard 34

Notes on the lanyard containci.? in iirevions accounts 34

Buoys or floats 31'

Features of the sealsHiin buoy or float described by other writers 31

Lines and ropes 37

n; •f A.

NOV 5 1920

COXTEXTS

Page
p The Wmale-hun't 38

Religious observances connected with whale hunting, as described by other
writers 38

^ Arrangement of equipment for whaling H

*^ The pursuit of the whale H

•Ilj Disposition of the whale carcass i-ii

(^ Religious observances connected with bringing in the whale i6

r. Method of navigation 17

Histoi-y of the whaling industry IT

Bibliography 50

ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATES

Plate 1. Making a "Chinook" canoe.

Plate 2. "Lighthouse Joe," with his harpoon and buoys ; a canoe under sail.

Plate 3. Along the Makah coast.

Plate 4. The harpooned whale.

Plate 5. Removing the skin from a whale carcass ; baskets for carrying harpoon-
heads.

Plate 6. Cutting up the whale.

Plate 7. The last of the whale.

Plate 8. Head of the whaling harpoon.

text figures

Figure 1. Dugout canoe from Northern California (Yurok tribe).

2. Two t3'pes of canoe found in the Pacific Northwest; a, the "North Coast"

model; b, the "South Coast" or Chinook model.

3. Diagram showing the nomenclature of the canoe.

k Diagram showing the ornamentation on the prow, viewed from above.

5. The shape of the "Chinook" canoe; a, the appearance of the bottom,

b, the appearance of the canoe viewed from in front.

6. Diagram showing the cross-section of the canoe.

7. Diagram showing the lashing which liolds tlic thwarts in place.

8. Canoe sail and rigging.

9. Diagram illustrating the weave employed in a sail of cedar-bark matting.

10. Canoe-bailer of alder-wood; a, the bailer; b, attachment of the loop or

handle, viewed from above; c, diagram sliowing how the bailer is
clutched when in use.

1 1 . Tip of harpoon shaft.

12. Diagram showing the assembling of the parts of the whaling harpoon-

head, a, the bone "hafts" or barbs, viewed from one side ; b, the cut-
ting edge viewed from above ; c, the complete head.

13. The float or buoy; a, the complete float with its attachments; b, detail

drawing showing the nipple and plug for inflation.

II'. Diagram showing the arrangement of the huntsmen and their equijinient
in the whaling canoe.

15. Diagram showing the cutting-up of the wliale.

INTRODUCTION

The present study was undertaken because of the presence for a time in the
city of Seattle of a member of the Makah tribe, Mr. C. Peterson, of Neah Bay. ^Ir.
Peterson is well informed concerning the life of his people, and has had for many
years a certain intellectual interest in the details of jirimitive culture, especially
with reference to his own group at Cape Flatter}'. The State Museum on the
Campus of the University supplied the various objects described below; man}' of them
being specimens collected by James G. Swan at Cape Flattery a number of years ago.

Several important printed works have appeared in the past, which deal with
the material culture of the Makah or their close neighbors. These works are cited
in detail in a terminal bibliography on page 50. The most recent of them is the
famous series of volumes entitled "The North American Indian." by Edward C.
Curtis. The eleventh volume of this great work, dealing specifically with the Nootka
and the Haida, includes numerous notes on the tribe which is the subject of the pres-
ent study. A much earlier work by another author, "The Indians of Cape Flattery,"
by James G. Swan, deals with a larger number of topics than does the book by Curtis,
but in a more schematic way. Swan's sj'stem of transliterating Makah words is less
accurate than Curtis' method. The most important paper on the primitive peoples
of this region is a monograph by Franz Boas, "The Kwakiutl of Vancouver Island."
This famous work contains descriptions of devices and processes, printed in the form
of texts in the native Kwakiutl dialect. The present writer has not dealt in detail
with any of those matters which are discussed by these earlier observers. Where
Boas has described a process, for example that of separating spruce root into fibers,
it seems unnecessary to go into that particular matter again. What he says of
technological processes among the Kwakiutl is practically all applicable to the Makah.
Boas' description is incomparable for the various manufactures and the detailed
processes involved in them. Curtis' ])rincipal interest, on the other hand, is
in ceremonies. His admirable account of the ceremonial practices performed in con-
nection with whaling, as carried on by tribes adjacent to the Makah (such tribes as
the Nootka, Quilliute, Quinault, and Kwakiutl), presents a very clear pictui?. What
this author says of the ceremonial practices of neighboring tribes ajjjjlies perfectly
well to the Makah. Where the accounts of these previous writers nverln)). their mate-
rial is summarized and put in the form of an abstract.

The photographs illustrating the whaling industry are tlie work of .\sahel
Curtis, Esq., of Seattle, successor to the Romans Photo Company, and they are
reproduced by arrangement with him. The line drawings were done by Sara
Vinsonhaler of the Department of Design of the University of Washington.

Alphabet Used in Recording Indian Terms. — Many sounds occur in Makah
which are not present in English. Swan^ spells tlie Indian words as best he can with
the ordinary English alpliabet. with the result that the words as he gives them often
do not sound like Makah. Curtis has a more complete set of symbols. His list does

' For nuthorities oitofl, sit tin- tcniiiiuil lil ]ift:;r)U:hy ni p. ro

6 U'alcrman [Vol. 1

not, however, represent all of the jMakah sounds. To describe the phonetic elements
of this dialect seems to be somewhat troublesome ; unless they are expounded in
physiological terms which are of no interest to the casual reader. The usual resource
on the jjart of authors who have to describe sounds such as these is to avoid "accurate"
physiological terms, which seem uselessly difficult; using instead certain "general"
terms, which, in most cases fail to convey any accurate idea of the sound as it is
spoken b}' the Indian. The following notes may serve to give some impression of
how the Makah words sound to the present writer. I think practically all of their
spoken sounds are here represented.

i, as in machine u, as in rule

(, as in pin v, as in full

e, as in fete o, as in note

£, as in met o, as on in ought

a, as in hat a, as in bar
A, as in but

DIPHTHONGS

ai, as in aisle oi. as in boil

SEMIVOWELS

w, y, substantially as in English

CONSON.\NTS

Labial- Contin- Affrica- Affricative

Stop ised stop uant tive Nasal Lateral lateral

covjfc, c^Pi. c^osfe.

Labial
Dental

P
t

b
d

ts ts'

Alveolar

tc tc'

Palatal

kw'

Velar
Glottal

qw'

h,'

L 1 tl, tL

The consonants are sounded approximately as thej' are in English, except for
the following:

Fortis Sounds — These are "exploded" or "cracked" consonants produced with
the vocal organs in the position for the ordinary sound, but with hard pressure. The

1920] Makah Indians 7

release is very sudden but the rush of breath is slight. The combination produces a
sharp sound, markedly different from anything in English. The sound itself is very
brief, but the firm "closure" which precedes it is often prolonged. As indicated in
the chart, these fortis sounds are of various types {p, k, t, etc.), and are of frequent
occurrence. The sj'mbol which represents them (namely, '), is explained below.

Labialized Stops — The nature of these sounds is indicated fairl}- well by the
symbols chosen to represent them.

Continuant Sounds — The symbol c stands for a simple sound which is represented
in English usage by a combination of two symbols, namely * and h, as in the English
word "she." The .r indicates a sound made by friction of the breath between the
back part of the tongue and the palate, as in German ach. This sound resembles
ordinary English h, except that the friction is more pronounced, the passage between
the tongue and the palate being greatly narrowed.

Affricative Sounds — These consist essentially of a continuant preceded by, and
"fused" with, a "stop." The symbol ts in Makah has approximately the value it has
in English, the two elements being pronounced as one sound. I think the sound is
more properly represented by one symbol, but no convenient symbol exists. As is
not the case in English, this ts sound in Makah is very frequent at the beginning of
words. The tc represents the combination of t with the c sound described above.

Lateral Sounds — One sound which does not exist in English, but which is
extremely frequent in Makah, is represented by L. This sound has the same rela-
tion to ordinary I that English p has to English h. namely the organs are in the same
position, but the vocal cords are not employed. Curtis represents the sound by a
combination of h with I. This combination may give a distant hint of its effect on
the ear.

Aifricatiz'c-lateral Sounds — These have the same relation to the laterals tiiat the
ordinary aft'ricatives have to the stops ; the lateral affricative, namely, is a lateral
which enters into combination with, and is "fused" with, a "stop" which precedes it.

Velar Sounds — These sounds, often described as "gutterals," are produced very
much in the fashion of ordinary A-, as it is in kick, but the contact is much further
back in the mouth. A little practice enables an English-speaking person to produce
these sounds without any difficulty. The "stop" is represented by q, and the corre-
sponding continuant by y.

Glottal Sounds — The most noteworthy of these is a "glottal stop" ('). Be-
tween vowels, this symbol indicates an interruption of the breath by a closure of the
larynx, which closure is achieved by drawing the vocal cords completely across the
passage. This is a commonplace action, performed, for example, in the process of
coughing. When used in connection with consonants, this symbol represents a
"stress" or "explosiveness," in wliicli a glottal closure is probably one factor. The
effect of this explosion produces on the ear a "cracking" of the consonant, wliich is
very noticeable and striking in the speech of the native Indians.

8 Waterman [Vol. 1

Note. — The symbols used in the above tabulation are based on the report of the
Committee of the American Anthropological Association on the phonetic transcription
of Indian languages." The sounds of ]\lakah correspond, almost throughout, to the
sounds of the Kwakiutl language as described by Boas in the opening pages of his
monograph already mentioned. The sound which Boas describes as resembling ky
and which he writes as h, I have written hy; and similarly with his x, etc. I heard
both s and c in Makah, and also the aflricatives, ts and ic. although in Kwakiutl only
s and its affricative ts occur. What Boas says of the other sounds of Kwakiutl,
seems to my ear to apply to the sounds of Makah. As with Kwawiutl, t, d and * are
very far forward. In the language as spoken by Mr. Peterson, they were actually
dental.

OUier Symbols Employed — Prolongation of a vowel or consonant is indicated by
( •), a period above the line. More pronounced prolongation is represented by a colon
( :) following the symbol for the sound. A period between two vowels indicates that
they do not form a diphthong. Long-continued and non-grammatical ))rolongation, as
in rhetorical exclamations, is represented by -f-.

The symbol " indicates that the preceding consonant was pronounced with an
0 (or ii) position of the mouth. Superior letters indicate in general whispered or
weakly articulated sounds. The symbol (<) indicates the presumable derivation of
a term ; or marks the word with which a given expression is associated in the mind of
the Indian. I am not sure of the etymological accuracy of all of these derivations. In
man}' cases they are undoubtedly correct. In explaining the meaning of Indian terms,
literal translations are preceded by (=).

Square brackets are used, as they are ordinarily, to mark the writer's editorial
comments, where such comments are necessary.

-See "Report on tlie iilionetlc tiansi'riftioii i.t Iii'lian liuisuasts," in tlic hilpliosriapliy .m p. r,0 below.

THE "CHINOOK" CAXOE

Probably the most important factor in the whaling industry of the Makah is the
canoe. They procure their food supplies for the most part from the open sea. In
the latitude of Cape Flattery the Pacific Ocean is very boisterous, and good boats
coupled with good seamanship are essential for a seafaring life. The hunting
grounds for whales lie along the shore, and the great animals, especially certain
species, sometimes come quite close in, but on the other hand the hunt often takes
the Indians entirely out of sight of land. The halibut banks, also, which are the
mainstay of their existence, and more important from the point of view of their food
economy than is the killing of whales, lie from iive to thirty miles off shore. Under
these circumstances, specialization in matters connected with the canoe takes on the
very highest importance. Better canoemen than the Makah have probably never
existed. I learn also that their boats deserve the very highest place for staunch sea-
worthiness, coupled with great manageableness and speed.

The Makah use only one type of craft, the so-called "Chinook" canoe.

This type of canoe is a dugout, hewn, except for a superimposed bow and stern
pi<;ce, from one cedar log. The particular model which is popularly spoken of as
the "Chinook" canoe, is illustrated in Figure 2, b. The use of this model is charac-
teristic of the whole of Puget Sound, and of a region stretching some distance to the
north and south along the coast. I am not familiar with the exact limits of the area,
but the Columbia River is included in it (Curtis, Vol. 8, Folio, Plate 265 shows that
boats of this type are used by the Wishram, living at the great cascades of this
stream). The use of this canoe characterizes the whole coast of Washington, and a
large part of the west coast of Vancouver Island. The Nootka and Clayoquot, near
Nootka Sound, use imposing specimens made along this model. In fact, there is
evidence that this type of boat originated with them.^ They manufacture a large
number of the boats whicli are in use at the present day, and supply them to the
tribes on Puget Sound and southward, either directly, or through the Makah. As
pointed out by Swan,** the Makah themselves do not make canoes to any great extent,
because their territory does not furnish the best cedar. They, however, depend
upon the canoe for all purposes, including the winning of their livelihood. The
"Chinook" type of canoe used by them in common with other tribes has never been
adequately described, so it may appropriately be taken up in detail here. It is as
much used by the Makah, and as skillfully handled, as by any tribe, even though
they do not as a usual thing manufacture their own boats.

THE NAIIE "cHIXOOk"

This word, "Chinook," holds a high place in the affections of the Northwest.
Primarily the name of one small sub-lribe, living at the mouth of the Columbia River,
it has become associated through historical accident not only with a type of canoe,
but also with a certain "jargon language," and with a warm southwest wind. The

' Lewis, 1906, p. 1C3.
' 1870, p. 30.

U'atcniian

[Vol. I

wind does not concern us here; but the jargon language which passess commonly
under the name "Chinook," is, like the canoe, the product primarily of the Nootka,^
living on the west coast of Vancouver Island, many hundreds of miles to the north
of Chinook territory. The term Chinook has long been in use, in connection with the
"jargon," and the canoe, and I think this usage, in spite of its inaccuracy, deserves
to be followed.

COMPARISON WITH CANOES OF OTHER PARTS OF THE PACIFIC COAST

There is a good deal of similarity in the dugout canoes used by the various tribes
along the whole Pacific Coast, including the tribes of Southern Alaska, those of
Northern California, and all the coast tribes in between. South of the Columbia
River, however. Indian boats are not very large, nor are they at all seaworthy. They
are built on what the northern Indians would call a "shovel-nose" model. The bot-
tom, that is to say, is rounded in cross section, but somewhat flatter toward the bow
and the stern, which are cut off square, as in the "punt" of civilized communities.
These squared ends are crowned up in a sort of peak, to relieve their clumsy appear-
ance, and among the California tribes a carven ornament rides upon the prow. Such
boats are excellent for quiet water, and are quite speedy, but the Indian takes his
life in his hands if he goes very far to sea in one of them. This is the type of craft
which the great Vancouver mentions, in connection with his exploration at Port
Orford, in Oregon, in the year 1792:

"Their canoes, calculated to carry about eight people, were rudely wrought out
of a single tree ; their shape much resembled that of a butcher's tray, and seemed very
unfit for a sea voyage or anj' distant expedition."

Pro, 1 — Dugout canoe from Northern California (Yurok tribe). University of California, Museum of Anthropology,
("ataloK NuMil.cr 1/1700. I.i-ngth, IS foot (,^).nO moti-isl.

• See Meany, 1907, p. 44.
« 1798, Vol. 1, p. 204.

19201

Makah Indians

This type of boat is the one used at the present time by the Yurok along the
Klamath River, in Northern California, and by their neighbors. Figure 1 shows a
characteristic Yurok specimen. This is exactly what we would expect to find, if a
knowledge of navigation, and a specialized industry in canoe-making, had become
gradually diffused southward from a center somewhere north of the Columbia River.

The same general type of craft is known along the coast of Washington, and a
close relative is found among the tribes of British Columbia, but it is used only in
navigating estuaries, rivers, sloughs, creeks and other quiet waters. In other words,
as we go southward, the size of canoes diminishes and we find fewer models in use,
until in northern California but one type, and that a relativesly poor one, has survived.

The "Chinook" canoe is in many ways an excellent model. It is very large, is
pointed at both ends, and carries lofty carved prow and stern pieces. It is perfectly
"fit" for use on the high seas. On the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, and north-
ward among the Indians of the British Columbia coast and Alaska, a slightly differ-
ent type of canoe is in use. This northern craft differs enough in externals of design
from the one last mentioned to be easih' distinguishable. If we call the second the
"Chinook" model, we may speak of this third type perhaps as the "Northern" model.
These "Northern" canoes, of which the Haida make probably the best specimens,
are very large in size, .exceeding the "Chinook" specimens (though the latter in
extreme cases reach a length of fifty feet or more). The northern boat is also more
elaborately ornamented. The main differences in shape are that the northern model
has a vertical cutwater, and an oblique stern, while the Chinook model has a sloping
cutwater, and is vertical at the stern. These differences are illustrated in Figure 2.

b Stern

NORTH COAST

c Cross section amidships.

MODEL.

/, Cross section amidships.

CHINOOK MODEL

I.- Two types of se

The "northern" model is drawn from a Haida specimen (University of Wash-
ington, State Museum, Accession No. 271); the "Chinook" model is from a minia-
ture canoe made of alder, Makah tribe (Catalog Number 26;)8).

12 Jl'atcniuvi [\'o\. 1

The difference just mentioned has been pointed out by previous writers. Niblaok
in Plate 3t of his "Coast Indians of Southern Alaska," illustrates it with a plate. In
his drawing, however, he has turned his Haida boat end for end, placing the stern
where the bow ought to be. This misrepresentation may be the error of his draftsman.
Niblack's own remarks, however (on page 295 of his work), seem to indicate that
the two ends of the boat are confused with each other in his memory. The bow of the
Haida boat, as may be noticed in Figure 2 on this page, does at first glance seem
to be designed for a stern. The best canoes in this Northwestern region, whether of
the northern or the Chinook model, show an outward "flare" in the side just below
the gunwale. The Makah boats exhibit this feature, and Curtis mentions it as charac-
terizing the canoes of Puget Sound (Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 60). Its purpose is to keep
waves from curling into the boat in rough weather. It hardly seems that so slight a
protection could have much effect, yet I am assured that the presence of the flare
makes the boat behave quite differently in a sea. The Makah say that the "northern"
or Haida boats lack this feature. Niblack, on the other hand (p. 295 of his work),
says that the northern models have it, while the Makah or "Chinook" specimens lack
it. The truth very likely is that the use of this flare depends upon the skill of tlie
individual carpenter. The only Haida canoe which I have had a chance to examine
(a University of Washington specimen), did not have this feature. I doubt, liowever.
in view of Niblack's remarks, that the lack of it is characteristic of any particular
tribe. The "northern" boats, says Niblack, "have projecting prows, higii, spur-
shaped sterns, flaring gunwales, and a gracefully rounding or curving cross-section,
although without any distinct keel. The latter have the blunt, straight stern, a grace-
fully curving bow, but a flat bottom, with little curve in the cross-section." This type
is "heavier, roomier, stronger, less cranky, and more durable than the Haida type,
but the latter is swifter, handier, and more buoyant." The present writer's Makah
informant says that the Haida canoe is not so "dry" as the Makah boat, nor is the
Haida boat, they say, so easy to handle. The Makah canoe ships no water except in
the wildest weather, and is even then easily kept free with a bailer (for this ingenius
utensil see below page 27). The Haida canoe, possibly on account of its liigh stern,
is said to be particularly good in a following sea.

"rating" of canoes

As remarked above, most of the tribes of the Pacific Northwest liave \arioiis
styles of craft, for use under special circumstances. For example, they often have
flat-bottomed and blunt-nosed canoes for use in still waters, and along creeks and
rivers. The !Makah spend their time in the turbulent waters around their cape, and
use their sharp-nosed sea-going Chinook canoes practically to the exclusion of every-
thing else. The only variant is a small wide boat, "with a stern at both ends." which
is used by young people before they can be trusted to handle the big canoes. Tliey
use, however, various sizes of canoes. The general term for canoe is tc'A'p.Ats
(Chap-ats, in the notation given by Swan). Niblack mentions four ratings as gen-
erally recognized among tlic Indians': (1) Hunting and fishing canoes. (2) family

1920] Makah Indians 13

and transportation canoes. (3) voyaging canoes, and (1) war canoes. Swan*^ groups
the canoes of the Makah into four classes. The spelling and accent of the native
terms for these ratings differ on different pages of this work. They are as follows :
(1) The whaling canoe, pa-dau-t'hl (p. 21), pah-dow-tlil (p. 95); (2) the canoe
for six persons, bo-kwis-tat (p. 21), bo-kwis-tat (p. 95); (3) a smaller canoe,
a-tlis-tat (p. 21), ar-tlls-tat (p. 95); (4) a very small canoe used for fisliing.
ta-ka-aii-da (p. 21), ta-kaow-dah (p. 95).

XoTE. — Swan's pa-dau-t'lil is probably pada'wiL.^outfit. or equipment. The
term in-obably refers to the equipment of floats, lines, tow-ropes, and harpoons, witli
which the wlialing canoe is laden. His term for the second type, bo-kwis-tat. is ex-
plained by my informant as bu-kyi'st, bu = four, kyist = inside. It would seem to be
properly a descriptive expression for canoes carrying four persons, not six. His
term a-tlis-tat, I cannot identify. His term for the "very small canoe," "te-ka-au-da.
is apparently tek'eodi'yak (:=; in the middle one sits). The craft was so small
that one could not sit in the stern without capsizing.

Curtis mentions two sorts of canoes, the whaling canoe, "oo'talisets." and the
war canoe, "wi-tuk-ests."

According to my informant there are seven "ratings " as follows:

The "freight" canoe, ci'tLats. This craft is the largest made. Such canoes
are employed when people are moving their effects from one locality to another. In
some cases even the house timbers are loaded into the canoe, or towed along beliind.
Occasionally two or three canoes are lashed side by side, and the house planks laid
across them to make a platform, spaces being left between the planks to accommodate
the paddlers. The Makah do not often resort to this device. If a squall comes up
the lashings liave to be cast off. or the canoes soon fill.

The "war" canoe. witA'ksAts (tAkwi'dak — war). This is given bv' Curtis
(\'ol. II. p. 179) as wi-tuk-csts. The craft is also known as the tLe'iks (^expe-
dition, or errand, boat). It is somewhat smaller than the preceding, and has much
less width of beam, in proportion to its length. It is used in warfare, for making
ceremonial visits, in connection with marriages and feasts, and is employed for all
extended trips. Canoes of this kind combine seaworthiness witli speed, but could not
carry much cargo without great inconvenience.

The "whaling" canoe. The bottom of tliis craft is 1' o "stretches ' of the builder's
arms in length.

The "three people" canoe, atLA'kwodiyak. This term is said to be descriptive
of the position of the men in the canoe, namely, two men forward, paddling, witli a
steersman in tlie sternsheets.

The "sealing" canoe. y£'cabA(|Ats ("for two men"). In pursuing the seal, one
man paddled while the other planted himself in tlie bow witli tlie liarpoon in readi-
ness. This general method is the one employed by civilized sealers at the present,
each boat carrying a "boat-puller," and a "hunter, " the latter with a rifle. The
sealing canoe is carefully designed so tiiat it does not splash the water as it sur-
mounts the waves. It carries a "knife-blade " at each end. whicli cuts tin- water (see

» 1870. pp. 21. (1.-..

14 Waterman [Vol. 1

below page 19. The seal are very alert and a boat which squatters over the
swells causes them to take alarm. This canoe measures along the bottom 3l/o
"stretches" of the arms, from tip to tip of the fingers.

The "one man" canoe, tck'eodi'yak (^in the middle one sits). This is men-
tioned in the note above. It accomodates one person only.

The "children's canoe," hupi'dwwac (<hu'p£d — salmon-trout). This craft
is small and, as the Indians say, "has a stern at both ends." In other words, both
stern and bow are finished off with a carven piece like the one represented in Figure
1. This boat is paddled about by children, for practice.

THE HULL OF THE CANOE

Features of the hull described by other writers

Note. — Fairly complete accounts of the splitting out and hollowing of the
canoe are given both by Swan and Niblack. Swan's especially is an excellent de-
scription, in outline. Niblack's account concerns primarily the Coast Indians of
Southern Alaska and British Columbia, but what he says applies in large part to
the Makali also. This description is not as full as the preceding one.

Curtis' passages on this matter add little to the ones previously written. This
author does not seem as a rule to be much interested in technological processes.

A very full description of the shaping of a canoe hull, a description which is
admirable in every way, and extremely graphic, is the one by Boas (Vol. 5, Part 2,
1909. pp. 31-1-369). This is a remarkable account, in Kwakiutl and English, of
all the operations of canoe-making, including the ceremonial observances connected
with it.

The Felling of the Timber of the Cniioe — A cedar tree for canoe-making is
selected with elaborate care, holes being bored to test its soundness (Boas, p. 344).
It is felled near a water-way (Niblack, p. 297). The carpenter "makes it fall"
on a favorable spot by throwing chips there ; and he calls a warning to the tree,
when he hears the wood cracking, to go down gently (Boas, p. 344).

Shaping of the Hull — The log is cut to the length required for the canoe by
the use of mauls and wedges. The sap wood is split off, and the top side of the
log is removed slab bj' slab to the level of the gunwales. Then the section of log
is turned over and the bottom of the canoe hewn out. Then it is reversed again and
the interior removed in slabs. When roughly shaped it is towed home and turned
bottom side up, to receive the final finish (Boas, 19. pp. 344-346; Swan, 1S70. j)]).
35, 36; Niblack, 1888, p. 297).

The different sections are adzed out in regularly prescribed order (Boas, 1909,
pp. 359-369; Figure 63, on p. 349 of his work). The thickness of the sides of the
canoe is one finger's width near the top, one and one-half finger's width midway
of the side, and two fingers' width at the bottom (Boas, p. 363).

Designing — The proper length for canoes for different purposes is established
by tribal custom (Boas, p. 350), and is measured by fathoms (a fathom being the
"reach " of the maker, the widest stretch of his arms). The curves of the canoe
are made entirelv by the eye (Swan, p. 36). The thickness of the sides is gauged
by placing one hand on the inside, the other on the outside and passing them over
the work (Swan, p. 36), or by drilling, here and there, numerous small holes, which
are later plugged with cedar pegs (Boas, p. 360).

Tools — The instruments consist of hand-adzes, long-handled adzes (both with
blades of stone), wedges of yew-wood bound with cedar withes to prevent s))litting.

1920] ^fakal: Indians 15

mauls of stone (Niblack, p. 297), bone drills, polishing materials, and chisels of
mussel-shell (Swan, p. 36).

A complete account of each of these tools is given bj' Boas, pp. 319-327.

Widening the Canoe — When the log is small, the sides of the canoe are widened
out with the aid of heat (Swan, p. 36). Fresh water is poured into the canoe to
the depth of four fingers. Into tliis, red-hot stones are dropped, by means of tongs.
When the water is hot, it is sprinkled all over the inner surface of the sides with
a bailer (Boas, pp. 364-366). The outside of the hull is warmed by nearby fires
of bark (Swan, p. 36; Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 60) or bj' scorching with celar splints
(Boas. p. 366). When the wood is "heated through," special struts of plank are
placed crosswise in the hull, and pounded home with a maul. This spreads the sides
of the canoe, in some cases as much as ten inches or a foot. Permanent thwarts
are then lashed into place (Boas, p. 366-367; see below, page 21).

Botv and Stern Pieces — The characteristic feature in the canoes of tlie North-
west are bold and striking bows and sterns. These consist of separate pieces,
hewn out of logs and joined to the hull bj' dowells and lashings (Curtis, Vol. 9,
p. 60; Swan, p. 36). The joining of these additional parts to the Iiull is so close
and well done that they are water tight without caulking. This careful fitting is
accomplished by rubbing the hull where the extra piece is to be fitted on with
grease and charcoal. The bow-piece is then seated exactly in place. When re-
moved, those parts, which have been blackened by contact with the opposite surface,
are adzed down, and the process is repeated until the bow-piece fits smoothly along
its whole length (Swan, p. 37),

Thwarts — These consist among the Makah of round poles (Swan, p. 36).
Among the Kwawiutl they are narrow ])lanks. three fingers wide with a thickness of
one finger (Boas, p. 366). Among the Makah they are fastened in place with
cedar witlics, which pass through perforations in the side of the boat (Swan, p,
36; Curtis, Vol. 9, p, 60). For the details, see p. 21 below.

Taboos — Boas mentions the following rules observed by the canoe-builder: He
avoids contact with the opposite sex (p. 34'4) ; otherwise he finds rotten places in
the wood from which he is shaping the hull. He does not comb his hair (p. 345) ;
otherwise the ends of bis canoe become split. Also, he does not permit anybody
to look wlien he is heating the hull and spreading the sides (p. 347) ; for that may
cause the canoe to split open. Similar rules .ire scrupulously observed by the Makah.

Paint — The inside of the canoe is colored with a "paint" composed of fish-oil,
or seal-oil, and ochre, or "Indian red" (Swan. p. 37). This red ochre is obtained
from a deposit in the territory of tlu Quilliute tribe, along the Quilliute River
(Swan, p. 17). Sometimes charcoal is mixed with oil and rubbed on the outside of
the hull. More commonly the hull is cliarred or scorched with lighted cedar splits,
as described below (page 22; Swan, )). 37). Blue clay instead of ochre seems
to have been used in the Puget Sound region (Curtis. Vol. 9, p. 61).

Carving — On the flat surface at the tip of the bow-piece, transverse grooves
are gouged, to make an ornamental pattern of parallel lines. (See Figure 4 below,
p. 17). Sometimes a pair of large round holes are cut through the bow-piece
just below the tip (Xiblack, Plate 34, upper figure, represents this feature). A
square-looking ornament, carved in relief, may be seen on the bow of most canoes
some distance down on the neck (inaccurately indicated by Plate 34 of Niblick and
Figure 18 of Swan; various plates of Curtis' work also show tiiis ornament). The
prow terminates in a carving which, according to Boas (p, 444), resembles a bird's
nest, but according to Curtis "has an accidental resemblance to a dog's head"
(Vol. 9, p, 60). The form of carving is fixed by custom, but has no symbolic
meaning.

Waterman

[Vol. 1

Similar incised lines are found in the "throat" of the prow, and on the stern-
piece ; the parallel incised lines of carving are carried from bow to stern along the
inside of the canoe, below the gunwale. [Something similar to this is mentioned by
Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 60.]

Parts of the hull

1. Carved bow-piece, kwAqu'b (=sits at the bow).

2,29. Joint, or "scarf," where the prow is joined to the hull (tabi'vq").

3, 3. Perforations, connected by transverse grooves, which accommodate
the necessary lashings.

4a. Projecting ornament, q'ada'do (=uvula).

46. Incised ornamentation consisting of parallel lines, tsu'tsu (=scratches).

5. Forward projection of the prow, le'kw'iLtAb (^tongue stiking out).

6, 6. Tip ends of the gunwales, ihi'qaAL (^ears).

12. After-end of the gunwale strip.

8. A thwart, tap'ab (=brace).

9. Space between tlie forward pair of thwarts, tl.'asu'b — Ats (=mast-

holder).
10. Gunwale-strip, tL'e'txats (^paddle-piece).
11, 11', 11". .Joint, or scarf, where the stern-piece is fastened to the hull.
1 2. After-end of the gun-wale strip.

IS. Carven stern-piece, kwa'a'ktLib (=sitting at the stern).
14. Incised ornamentation resembling 4?).

Navies for the "spaces" betrceen the thu-arls

A. hitA'kwAd (Swan, pp. 21, 9!>, he-tuk-wad, hey-tuks-wad).

B. kaqai'yuwaxs (Swan, loc.cit ka-kai-woks, hah-hai-xcohs).

tc'eL-'kduwAxs (Swan, loc.cit. cha-t'hluk-dos, chah,-thlik-do-as).

liitA'ksistAxs (=inside place),
ll.'i'tca (=stern).

ADDITIONAL NOTES ON THE HULL

Boxc and Stern Pieces

When the canoe is small, the whole hull is carved from one piece. In the craft
of greater size, large additional pieces, called in general si'kwAb="sitting jjieccs"
(<kwasa=to sit), are fastened on to the hull. These added sections are designed
with great elegance, and, as described by Swan (p. 36), are fitted to the canoe with
exquisite care. The bow-piece. kwAqu'b. is rough-hewn from a cedar log, to the

1920]

Makah Indians

proper dimensions. On the Inill a "scarf," tabi'dfq*' (="joint") is prepared, into
which the bow-piece exactly fits. In some cases shoulders in this scarf prevent the
bow-piece from slipping when it is once in place. In other cases a large curving
socket is cut in the bow of the boat, and the bow-piece carved so as to fit in. Plate
\.b, shows a carpenter fitting such a bow-piece on his boat. Holes are drilled into
the edges of both elements, carefull_y matched as to position. Cedar pegs or
"dowells," iLA'p'iqAb (<tL'tla'pa = to hammer) are then used to fasten the two
together. The work is so well done that the hull and the additions to it seem to be
all in one piece. The "auger" for boring holes consists of a bone blade set in a
handle and twirled between the palms. This drill is described and figured by Boas
(p. 323 of his work).

These bow and stern pieces are very carefully designed with a view to artistic
effect. They add very markedly to the gracefulness of the boat. Moreover, they
carry out and round off the lines of the hull, and lend a very "finished" effect. The
flat gunwales of the canoe are carried or "lifted" to meet the top of the bow piece,
producing a fine sweeping curve, and are cut off square at their extremity. What
seems to be a notch between them. Figure 5, h, and as seen in Plate 1, h, is really a
trench or groove. This trench is in origin a continuation of the floor of the canoe,
which becomes V-shaped at the bow and rises up to meet the gunwales. The corners

Fig. 4 — Diat-

a, notch where the point of the harpoon rests; h, the scratch ornanuiitatioii :
tongue, or \vid<;t -shaped projection; </, tiie gunwale.

18 Waterman [Vol. 1

of the projecting prow are called the ihi'iiabAL, (=the edge or margin of a person's
ear). The harpoon point rests in this notch when the Indians are after whale or
porpoise. Perhaps the most striking element in the prow is a carven "snout, " which
projects out in front of the "ears." It is called le'kw'iLtAb, "tongue sticking out"
(<l£ka:'ik ^ "tongue") ; and gives the prow exactly the appearance of an animal's
head. The Indians say that this carving represents nothing at all, and is merely "for
looks." The life-like "effect " of the ornamentation is increased by the "cock" of the
prow, the whole canoe having an air of alertness, as though it were alive and moving
of its own accord. The Indian's consciousness of the canoe as an artistic whole, and
his anxiety for effect, is shown by the carving of the projecting ornamentation svhich
is visible on the neck of the canoe, some distance below the snout. It is called
q'ada'ds, "uvula" (the organ which projects downward from the soft palate, in the
back of the mouth cavity). The Indians say that the boat "looks bad," unless there
is something at this point to break the line of the prow. The loving care they expend
on the making of the canoe is also shown by a decoration consisting of lightly incised
lines. Across the flat surface leading back from the "ears " is an ornamentation con-
sisting of parallel grooves, called tsu'tstsu (<tsuts ^ scratch: tsu = to finish off).
This "scratch ornamentation" is shown in Figure 4.

Where the longitudinal groove begins to widen out to make the body of the boat,
a wedge-shaped tongue (Figure 4, c) is invariably carved. This again is merely "to
give finish." From this tongue, horizontal grooves called tsu'tsi.i'dAb (tsuts = to
scratch; i'dAb = gunwale), extend along the inside of the boat just below the gun-
wale,' clear to the stern. They are purely for ornament, but like the other features,
are found in this same unvarying form in all good canoes. This ornamentation is
made with a special tool resembling a reamer.

The stern-piece. kwa'a'ktLib (= sits on the stern), is not so large as the bow-
piece, nor (as might perhaps be expected) is it so elaborately ornamented. But it is
most appropriately designed to "fit" its place, and merges admirably into the general
design of the canoe. I do not see how anything could better illustrate the Indian's
eye for effect than the care taken in designing this modest and inconspicuous stern-
post. Like the bow-piece, it is painstakingly carpentered, and dowelled and lashed
into place.

When the boat needs mending, sections of plank or jiatches are set into the
side. Such an inset or patch is called qwAb. or tL';is"i (<tLa'sak^an addition).
Old boats are likely to be much iiatohed, as the result of the weathering and crack-
ing of the wood, and hard usage.

I have tried to indicate my sense of the artistic skill shown in the designing of
these "sitting pieces." It must be borne in mind that their purpose is, nevertheless,
primarily not aesthetic. The upreared bow-piece is put there to throw aside the seas
into which the canoe is driven. If it were not there, every sea which the boat
encountered would come right aboard. The stern-piece has a similar function and
increases the seaworthiness of the boat tremendously. The bow-piece is much the
larger of the two for obvious reasons, since the boat rides a following sea much more
easilv than the seas which arc met solidlv. head-on. In beaching a canoe, the Makah

1920]

Makah Indians

always ride in stern-foremost. I think this is on account of the fine protection against
heavy seas that is afforded by the bow. Both bow and stern-pieces are so slender that
they hardly seem adequate to keep off the seas (see Figure 5, 6). They have prob-
ably been reduced, as the result of long usage, to the slenderest design which will
fulfill the purpose. Yet even in their present form they are highly useful. I dare say
that their reduction to their present slender proportions has been equally for the
artistic effect of delicacy, and for the practical consideration of reducing the total
weight of the boat. The Indians have reached in this feature of tlie canoe what
seems to my mind the highest artistic success, the making of what is a commonplace
and practical contrivance, also artistically beautiful.

Fig. .') — The sliapo of the "Chinook" ranoe.

a, the hull below the water line; h, the appearance of the canoe from in front. At
points Nos. 1 and 2 in the upper figure the bottom narrows into a sort of knife-blade.

THE SH.\PE OF THE HULL

The under side of the boat (Fig. 5, a) has some interesting features, from the
Standpoint of design. From the point marked 1 and 2 in the diagram (Fig. 5, a)
the bottom of the boat narrows and at the same time protrudes slightly, producing
a sort of keel at bow and stern. The narrow part rides somewhat lower in the
water than the rest of the bottom. A "blade" of this sort at bow or stern is called
stp-u's (<si'ap = anything elongated and crested). It has a very practical pur-
pose. In hunting sea-mammals, especially the seal and the otter, great silence is
necessary. A ship's boat, even one of the better designed ones, when it surmounts
a wave and dips forward is likely to slap the surface of the water. This noise often
alarms the quarry. Seals are frequently found napping in the water, turned on
their backs or their sides, with the hind flippers turned forward and up, breathing

20 Waterman [Vol. 1

peacefully as their heads emerge from the waves. The Indian canoe can approacli
much more silently than the white man's boat, for this knife-blade at bow or stern
cuts the water, instead of pounding down into it. The seal canoe has conspicuous
"knife-blades" at both bow and stern, to prevent any splashing which might result
from the pitching of the boat in the seas.

The Chinook canoe has a rather flat bottom, as pointed out by a previous writer
(6, Fig. 2, p. 11 above). The terms for the various parts of the inside of the hull
are shown in the following diagram (Fig. 6):

a. hitA'ktAk, bottom.

b. tL^Atc, curve at the side (<tL'AtcAk = to fold).

c. hitA'tsk, side.

d. hitAkwi'i, along the top of the gunwale.

e. tL'e'txats, gunwale-strip (<tLi'''xAk = to paddle).

f. di'tLki"i, out-turn of the side, just at the gunwale.

Interior Fittings

The canoe has no ribs or knees, "holding up" merely by the strength of
the solid hull. Along the top of the gunwale lies a gunwale-strip, tL'e'ixats (mean-
ing "against it one works the paddle"). This is a thin strip of plank some three
inches wide, extending from stem to stern of the boat. This plank is fastened
down with cedar pegs. Its purpose is to prevent the sides from being worn down
by the rubbing of the paddles as the boat is propelled. When this strip becomes
worn, it is easily replaced by a new one. The thwarts are called ta'p-ab, "bracers"
or "spreaders" (<ta = to brace). This term arises from the custom of spreading
a canoe artificially by means of heat as described above in the quotations from
Swan and Boas. Special struts, ta'ktup (<taktc=to push with a pole) were used
for the actual work of prying the canoe open. The thwarts get the name "spread-
ers" because they were fitted in as though to keep the sides from closing together
again. The word "spreaders" is in general use for thwarts, although this "spread-
ing" was done only in special cases. The fitting of the thwarts is done as follows:
Round pieces of the proper length are cut. and each end is worked down into a sort
of dowell, suptsu'watits. One hole is drilled horizontally through the thwart, and
two pairs of smaller holes through the side of the canoe (Fig. 7), one pair above
the other. A withe made of cedar limb is soaked to make it soft. It is first rove
through the thwart, is then passed outward through the side of the boat, and back

1920]

Makah Indians

through another perforation, then through the thwart again, and so on, by the
method shown in Fig. 7, until the thwart is firmly bound in place. The remainder
of the withe is served around the dowell. Both ends being caught beneath the
lashing, the whole is very solid and presents moreover a very workmanliiie appear-
ance. The lashings neatly fill in over the more slender part of the thwart, and give
the whole a very smooth and finished effect.

3 2 I

Fig. 7 — Diagram slioAviiig the lashing wliicli holds the thAvarts in place.

a, A section from the outside of the boat, showing the appearance of the two turns
of lashing seen from the outside, h, Diagram showing how the lashings are applied.
The strip is laid along the thwart, beginning at 1, goes through the thwart at 2,
enters a hole through the side of the boat at 3, emerges on the outside of the hull
at 4, starts inward through a hole at 5, enters the hole througli the thwart at 6,
passes through the luiU again at 7, returning at 8, passes through the thwart at 9,
emerges on the far side, and begins to wrap around it as at 10. r, diagram of a
cross-section of the side of the boat, showing the thwart and the finished wrapping,
with the end cauglit under a turn at 11.

The manufacture of tliese cedar withes or lashings is described by Boas
(p. 375) and will be referred to later in the present paper under the heading of
ropes and lines.

On the floor of the boat are other fittings. Forward in the boat, just below
the pair of thwarts at the bow, is a socket in which the mast is stepped when sail
is hoisted. This socket, hi'ksn'b, is a carven block of alder wood, -i inches wide by
8 inches long, thin toward the edges and thick in the center. In its upper surface a
pit is carved which accommodates the foot of the mast. The block is fastened
lengthwise in the bottom of the boat with cedar pegs. The canoe curve is supplied
with bottom-boards of cedar (Lit-tsi'b ^ "covering." a word applied to mats or
anything used to cover an object). They are carefully smoothed and rounded to
fit the shape of the boat, and furthermore are "crowned up" toward their middle
part, so that whatever water comes aboard drains off of them. Between the end
of one plank and the end of the next one, a space is left to permit of bailing the
boat. The bailer is an ingeniously shaped object, to be described on a later page.

It will be seen by looking at the figure that the thwarts or "seats" are round
poles. Blankets and mats are used to pad these poles to form scats. The Jndian
kneels to paddle, however. The canoes made on the northern coast are provided with
flat benches. I am not informed why the Makali and their immedate neighbors elect
to employ poles instead of beiiciics. Makah canoes at the i)rescnt time are often

22 Waterman [Vol. 1

fitted with ribs, and the seats made of plank, and the small canoes often have thole-
pins or metal oarlocks.

Care of the Hull

The outside of the hull is carefully charred over with lighted cedar splints. This
is done when the canoe is first made in order to preserve the wood from decay.
The process is repeated from time to time, and the canoe rubbed with a wisp of grass,
or cedar twigs, to clear the bottom of the fouling of barnacles and seaweed which
accumulate there (Swan, p. 37).

These matters are described by Boas in the following terms:

"When the canoe is made ready for the hunting season, its outer side is dried
carefully, so that all the small splints turn outward. These are burned off with
torches, which are afterwards moved once more slowly over the whole surface of
the canoe until a layer of charcoal shows on the outside. Then the canoe is turned
over and allowed to cool. When it is cold, it is rubbed down [with an old mat,
according to another passage] at right angles to the grain of the wood. When it
is quite smooth, the outside up to the water-line is smeared with tallow. Olachen-
oil is not used for this purpose, on account of its odor. After this the bottom of
the canoe is struck with spruce-branches to give it a good smell.

The canoe must never rest on the ground ; otherwise its bottom becomes rough-
ened. It is always carried, never pushed along over stones. It must rest so high
that a person can sit under the bow, and lift it on his shoulder. The hunter carries
in his canoe two round cedar-sticks, about 10 cm. in diameter and a meter long.
When a landing is made during ebb-tide, the stern is brought ashore first. The poles
are then placed under the canoe to protect the bottom from the pebbles of the beach."
(Boas, p. 500.)

Ornamentation

Mention has just been made of the fact that the prow is carved in such a
form as to suggest the head of an animal (see above, p. 15). Curtis remarks that
this resemblance is accidental ; and my own inquiry pointed to the same conclusion.
That is, my informant stated that while this carving is considered necessary by
tribal custom, it does not "mean anything." This is remarkable, because the form
given the prow is far too lifelike to be the result of anything but design. More-
over, the neighboring tribes to the east and north of the Makah have a highly
developed totemic art. Carvings representing animals play a great part in their
lives. Figures representing animals are invariably present on their canoes, lending
the craft a very picturesque appearance. It seems altogether likely, then, that this
carving on the Makah canoe was, in origin, totemic. If so. its significance is not
recognized at the present day. The Makah canoe, compared to that of the
Kwakiutl, or the Haida, is very plain, and almost devoid of external ornamen-
tation. Whatever artistic interest it has, results principally from beauty of design,
and careful workmanship.

In addition to the black coloring material consisting of "fish-oil" and charcoal,
mentioned by Swan, an evil-smelling black muck, obtained in swamps, is sometimes
used. It is called kak'i'tsbts (cf. sAkw'a'kubts = dirt, earth). The fish-oil (olachen-
oil? dogfish oil?) mentioned by Swan is in some cases replaced by decayed salmon

1920]

Makah Indians

roe (a'tc'pab). The "Indian red" (red ochre) is called LtxtC£'t"bis. The combina-
tion dries very quickly. The charcoal used in painting is called tibt'sbis. The best
kind is obtained by burning alder. White clay, tL'si'bAs, is occasionally used in
making designs, sometimes on canoes.

SAILS AND RIGGING

Features of the rigging described by other writers

Sails — The primitive sail is of the "square" type (Swan, p. 38) and is made
of cedar-bark matting (Swan, p. 38; Boas, p. 446). It is attached top and bottom
to yards consisting of light cedar poles (Swan, p. 38). These mats are woven on
a woof of cedar-bark twine. At the top and bottom of the mat these war-strings
are made into an openwork border, which permit the sail to be easily attached to
the yard (Boas, p. 391).

Among the Kwakiutl sails were made also of thin boards, sewed together (Boas,
p. 4-16).

Rigging — This consists of a mast, two yards, a "hallyard" to pull up the sail,
the "sheets" and "braces' (Boas, p. 446; Swan, figure 20) which are attached to
each corner of the sail.

Waterman

[Vol. 1

e,
f.

9-9''

mast, tLaxsi'b.
noose at masthead.

upper yard. tLiicVixtub (<tLucak=^a rod: liideaxtiL=over the top),
sail of matting, Ltsa'p'iyak (<Li'tsAk^to spread: hidap = up).
halyard, tci'aptLtLek ( <tci'apiL ^ to pull up),
"brace," tci-tcabub (<tci^to pull: ihi't'abuL :^ the top corner of the human

ear).
lower yard, tLusa'baktLtb ( <CtLusak' ^ rod: liitAksabaktL ^ the bottom

edge of a mat, or other fabric),
"sheet," tci-ksaba'ktLiyek (= pulling on the bottom of a mat).

ADDITIONAL NOTES ON RIGGING

The sail is an oblong mat (Curtis; chibat) of a type already described and
figured by Boas (1909, p. 383, figures 74, 75; 1916, p. 52, figure 9). A specimen in
the University of Washington Museum consists of a mat, three feet and one inch
wide by five feet seven inches long, with a pole or "yard" at its top and bottom.
Boas remarks that only coarse mats and large baskets are made in this checkerboard
weave, a twilled tecnique apparently being employed for the finer pieces.

Fig. 9 — Diagrnm illustrating the weave employed in a sail oi: cedar-bark matting : a, The border where the
sail is attached to the yard ; b. Section from the middle part of the lower border. University of AVashington,
State Museum, Catalog Number 209 (Makah tribe). Diameter of yard; 1^;^ Inches (2.7 cm.); width of ele-
ments, Vj cm.

1920] Makah Indians 25

1, 1, 1, 1. Warp tlements.

2, 2, 2, 2, Woof elements.

3,3', Broad ribbon-like strips of eedar-bark. 1 cm. wide, dyed black, and

worked in along the edges of the mat as an ornamental border.
4, 4', String or cord of braided cedar-bark, which serves as the foundation of
the "edging" which finishes off the sides of the sail. The woof strands
numbered 2, 2, 2 pass over tlie black "ribbon," then around the cord,
and the end is fastened down by the next following strand of woof.
The wide ribbon 3' is separated into three divisions at its terminations,
and these divisions are caught separatelv into this cord, and held
fast (5, 5', 5").
6. 6', A single row of plain twining, which binds the warp elements in place
at the lower fringe of the mat. Each strip is caught separately in a
"turn" of this plain twining.

The vertical ribbon, 3, is also divided into three narrow strips, and

each of these strips is caught separately into the row of plain twining,

as indicated at 5, 5', and 5".

7. 7' 7". A three-strand braid, produced by plaiting together three adjacent warp

strips, as they emerge below the row of twining. From 20 to 30

rows at each side are finished in this way. Toward the center of the

mat, the strips are merely twisted together, some of the elements

being split and parted to one side and the other. This braiding and

twisting produces the openwork effect.

A strip of cedar-bark, wound spirally around the braid, t. Appar-
ently in making this border, the maker worked from the right toward
the left. Each string is caught under this spiral ribbon; and is then
turned over it to the left, where the end is caught under the succeeding
coil of the spiral.
9, 9', Light three-strand string, with wliich the "clews" or corners of the sail
arc caught to the yard.

The openwork border resembles in weave the basket border shown in Boas,
1909, figure 81. page 392. The University of Washington specimen seems to be
specially designed for a sail, being finished off in one way at the upper and lower
borders, and in another tecnique at the sides. Its construction is shown in figure
9. The mat figured by Boas as a typical specimen has three black elements worked
into the fabric, parallel to the border, producing a sort of band of checkerboard
ornamentation around the edge of the mat. The present specimen has four similar
rows of this black and white ornamentation, beside a wide ribbon of black, which is
inserted just inside the border.

The sailing equipment of the Makah canoe is very primitive. The mast is a simple
pole, which is inserted in the socket already described, and lashed upright between
the two forward thwarts. There are no stays to hold it in place, the mast holding
up through the rigidity of the wood. It is hardly more than a stick, since the sail
is very small, and the strain is not at all heavy. A noose made of a cedar withe is
lashed to the top of the pole. Through this is rove a line of twisted sea-lion gut.
This line is called bAqw'Atsi'dibe-k (<bAqw't'ts = string) or simply tsi'kyub, "gut".
It served as a halyard for hoisting the sail. Sometimes this noose is replaced by

26 Waterman [Vol. 1

a hole made in the mast itself. At top and bottom the warp threads project beyond
the fabric in the form of loops. Through these loops a round stick or rod might be
inserted to serve as a "yard." In the specimen examined by myself (Fig. 9) the sail
is attached to the pard by extra lashing. The sail is of a square type, and the only
additional rigging required beyond the halyard for pulling up the sail are "sheets"
attached at the lower corners, and "braces" attached at the upper corners of the
sali, to manage it in the breeze.

Captain Cook writing in 1778 says that sails are not aboriginal in this region.
The Indians of today look upon their sails and rigging as their own invention.

DEFECTS OF THE CANOE

The canoe is not designed for a sailing craft, and so its design from that stand-
point is very defective. Progress by tacking is impossible, as the boat would make
more leeway than headway. When a breeze comes over the stern they hoist sail.
When there is no favorable breeze, they stow the mast and sail, and paddle. They
have no words for "tacking" or "wearing" or other nautical maneuvers. The worst
weakness of the canoe is a structural one — namely, a tendency to split (see Boas,
p. 446). A canoe may split open into two halves if roughly handled, especially if
it is driven vigorously into a cross sea. When hauled up on the beach, it is carefully
covered from the effects of the sun, which starts "checking" and splitting, and may
in a few hours ruin a good boat. This covering may consist of mats, blankets, boards
or branches (Boas, p. 446; Curtis, Vol. 10, p. 16). These are the points in which
the Indian canoe is inferior to the white man's boats. For buoyancy and easy riding
of the waves in stormy weather, it compares favorably with any craft in the world.
In cleverness of design and adaptation to its special purpose, and for artistic grace,
it may almost be called a triumph of workmanship.

PADDLES

Information contained in previous accounts

Material — The paddle is made of yew or maple (Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 61 ; Swan,
p. 38; Boas, 1909, p. 496). The cross-piece at the top is made of "red pine" (Boas,
p. 497). [Alder, according to my information concerning the Makah practice; cf.
Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 179].

Design — The blade is thin and somewhat elastic, and often sharply pointed or
"lanceolate." The sharper types are said to make less noise when entering the
water (Boas, 1909, p. 496). The top of the paddle ends in a dowell, which fits
into a short cross-piece, four finger-widths long. The hole which receives this
dowell is made rectangular, and the cross-piece is carefully fitted on the shaft (Boas,
1909, p. 498). This cross-piece is sometimes made of alder (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 179).

Staining — The paddle is carefully smoothed and polished, and blackened by
charring (Swan, p. 38). According to Boas, the KwakiutI greased the implement

1920] Makah Indians 27

with perch-oil, and blackened it by burning with piece of pitch wood (Boas, 1909,
p. 498). This black color never comes off.

Additional notes on the paddle

The paddle, kla-tah-juk in Swan's orthography (1870, p. 95), hlatawachuk
in Curtis (Vol. 11, p. 179) is a very well-designed implement. The proper length
for a paddle is the distance from tlie owner's chin to the ground. The paddles used
in hunting had more slender and delicate blades than those used in paddling the
freight canoe.

My informant describes a somewhat different method of blackening the paddle
from that referred to on the preceding page. There are certain growths on hemlock
bark which supply a rich coloring matter. These growths are spoken of as "blisters"
and are due to the growth of a fungus. These blisters, tc'i'twbu, are cut out and
dried. In making a paint or "stain" they are pounded up and mixed with urine
and boiled over the fire. The mixture is used exactly as we use a commercial stain
for woodwork. The paddle is painted a solid color. When stained the paddle is
held in the smoke until it becomes a glossy black. In this respect Makah paddles
differ from the paddles of the north coast, which are painted with striking totemic
designs, in red and black.

The middle part of the shaft is not stained, because it is later wrapped evenly
with kelp-stem. This material is used for fish-lines, and is very tough. This
wrapping of kelp gives a very satisfactory hand-hold.

THE CANOE-BAILER

An important article in the Makah canoe is the wooden bailer, xutcA'k. Several
types of bailers are in use on the Northwest Coast, some of them quite ingenious.
Boas figures several wooden specimens, of the general appearance of dippers or
scoops, and one made of cedar-bark (Boas, 1909, p. 446). The Makah use only one
type, and this is a type which, as far as I know, has not been described. Its
general appearance is shown in Fig. 10, a. The use for which it is intended would
hardly be suspected from its appearance, in the first sketch. It is pyramidal in
shape, Iiollowed from a single block of maple or alder, qwAxsa'bAp. Cedar is too
soft for the purpose for which the object is intended; it would wear out very quickly.
The ends of the utensil are somewhat concave when viewed from the outside, and
concavity deepens into a crease at the apex of the bailer. Two holes are bored
transversely (Fig. 10, 6) through the sides of this channel, and a cedar peg driven
through. This peg serves to fasten a loop or hoop made of two cedar twigs twined
together and bound with string of nettle fiber. The loop forms a convenient handle
by which the utensil may be carried. The Indian often puts the handle of his
paddle through this loop, or may carry several bailers at once, strung on the shaft
of his paddle. The loop also serves as handle by which the bailer is clutched in
scooping the water out of a boat (Fig. 10. c). The fact that the loop is seated

n'aieriiian

[Vol. 1

tstjsiSIS'S^' -sss^s-ssiK-ss-sjittrfis si

1920] Makah Indians 29

in the bottom of the crease prevents it from being worn in two through scraping the
sides and bottom of the boat.

A more effective utensil than this bailer could scarcely be devised. A person
can with one scoop of this instrument throw over a much larger amount of water
than the utensil itself contains ; for it fits closely against the curve of the boat, and
a quantity of water is "pushed ahead" of it. A boat can be cleared in half the
time that would be occupied in bailing with a can or a tin kettle. The instrument
is cleverly designed ; and in this simple utensil one observes the same merging of
lines, and the same effect of compactness and unity, that can be noticed in the
forty-foot canoe. The bailer is colored a smooth, deep red, inside and out, by the
use of "hemlock" paint, as described above. The use of this type of bailer seems
to be characteristic of the Makah.

THE WHALING HARPOOX AND ITS ACCESSORY DEVICES

The complete harpooning apparatus consists of the harpoon-shaft; the harpoon
head (itself made up of numerous parts); a lanyard; floats; various sections of
harpoon line, to which the floats are attached ; and lines for towing tlie quarry home.

THE HARPOON-SHAFT

Information contained in previous accounts

The harpoon-shaft is composed of two carefully selected pieces of yew, scarfed
together at the middle of the instrument. The end of each section is cut diagonally,
and the two sloping surfaces are matched, fitted together, and bound with braided
cord of cedar-bark fiber. The reason for using two pieces of yew was not known
to Edward Curtis, nor to Swan. The underlying cause may be that it is difficult to
find one clear piece of the proper length, this length varying from fourteen to
eighteen feet in different weapons (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 16; Swan, p. 20).

The shaft tapers to a point at each end.

Additional notes on the harpoon-shaft

Very particular care is taken with the manufacture of the harpoon-shaft,
dupu' yeq (du-poi-ak, in Swan's orthography. 1870, p. 21). Its dimensions vary
according to circumstances. Swan gives the length as 18 feet. A Makah specimen
examined by myself (University of Washington State Museum, catalogue number
213) measured only 13 feet fi inches. The University of Washington specimen con-
sists, as is invariably the case, of two independent sections, neatly scarfed together
in the middle. My informant was sure that there is a practical reason for making
the shaft in two parts; though he could not remember what the reason was. This
scarf (tsA't-as; cf. tsAtsA't'evax ^^ points where fore shafts, etc., detach) begins
five feet from the head of the shaft. The two oblique surfaces which make the joint,
are exquisitely smoothed, and fitted. Each surface is about nine inches long. A
white man would hardly attempt to make this joint "hold," but tlie Indian wraps
it very carefully with braided cedar-bark (tsi.i'sy), and the whole is rigid when
done. On the University of Washington specimen the scarf had begun to loosen

Waternian

[Vol. 1

from age or the drying out of the wood. Cedar-bark string is used because it does
not loosen when wet, as sinew or seal-gut would do. The string is braided instead
of twisted, so that it will be flat on the shaft, and take better hold. On top of this
braided sling is a wrapping of wild-cherry bark. This serving of bark around the
scarf gives an excellent hold for the left hand of the harpooner.

At another point the shaft is wrapped for about nine inches, to afford a "grip"
to the harjiooner's right hand. This wrapping also consists of braided cedar-bark,
covered with a spiral wrapping of cherry-bark. The two "hand-grips" are separated
by a space of 27 inches.

The tip of the harpoon is channeled out along one side (see Fig. 11). The
sinew lanyard which leads back from the harpoon head to the float just iits into
this groove.

Fig. 11 — Tip of harpnon shaft, showing the groove into which flts the lanyard leading back from the harpoon-
bead. University of Washington, Catalog Number 213. Length of groove, 12 inches (31 cm).

The harpoon-shaft becomes warped very easily and has to be very carefully
straightened before each hunt.

The Indian straightens an 18-foot harpoon-shaft exactly as lie does a 28-inch
arrow-shaft, by Iieating it and carefully wrenching it back to "true." He wraps
the shaft with big-leaved kelp, and holds it over the tire. When warm and steaming
and thoroughly heated through, he straightens it over his knee.

The Indian usually tries to get for his harpoon-shaft a piece of material that
will carry with it "good luck" in whale-hunting. The material itself is yew,
tL'ixa'ktLbAp (tL'i'xuk^red ; u'bAp^kind, species), and is carefully selected.
Swan gives an account of a pillar-like rock with a cavity near its top which stands
in the sea near Cape Flattery. In this cavity there rested in his day a great spar.
The Indians, according to Swan, looked upon this spar with veneration, and believed
that anybody attempting to dislodge it would fall off the crag and be drowned. A
photograph of this rock is shown in Plate 3. The spar, by the time the photograph
was taken, had decayed and fallen to pieces. My informant says that many an
Indian tried in former years to get this spar for a harpoon-shaft, believing that its
unusual situation indicated that there was "power" in it. No one was willing to
ask for help in reaching it, because secrecy, as mentioned above, was an essential
feature in all preparations for whaling, and so the spar stayed there till it rotted.

THE HARPOON-HE.1D

Inforviation contained in previous accounts

The harpoon-head is made up of several elements cunningly joined together.
The foundation consists of a pair of pointed barbs, made of elk-antler or bone,
which fit neatly together (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 16; Swan, pp. 19, 39). The end of
the whale-sinew lanyard is attached by unlaying the strands and making them fast
around the barbs ; and then winding the whole with cord and strips of cherry-bark.

1920] Makah Indians 31

A socket is fashioned in the reai- ot the head, into which the point of the wooden
harpoon-shaft exactly fits. The blade, or cutting edge, was formerly made of a
large mussel-shell (Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 66), but in recent years of copper, or steel
saw-blade (Swan, pp. 19, 39). This blade, whatever the material, is cut into the
shape shown in Fig. 12, and inserted between two barbs, the ends of which are
cut away to accommodate it. A "fat" knot of spruce is set in front of a fire, and
the gum which melts out is caught in a shell. This gum is kneaded and spread
smoothly over the harpoon-head. [Boas, 1909, p. i88, says "the point of the salmon
spear is gummed over to make it smooth and prevent it from tearing the fish". The
spreading of gum over the harpoon-head maj- in similar fashion tend to make it
smooth, so that it may cut its way deeper when the quarry is struck.]

Additional notes on the harpoon-head.

The finished harpoon-head is a very neat and tidy union of a number of sep-
arate elements. The word for the device, considered as a finished product is
qwi"kapL (<kwi'ktcu=to sharpen by grinding). Swan (1870, pp. 20, 21) gives
kwe-kaptl, kwe-kwahptl. The hariMon-head most familiar to students who frequent
museums is the Eskimo type, carved from a block of ivory, provided with barbs,
a crack or socket for the reception of the cutting blade, and a perforation for the
attachment of the harpoon-line, all in one piece. The most striking peculiarity of
the Makah specimens is that they consist of two separate halves of antler or bone,
cunningly joined by binding with string. The reason for the difference is, I pre-
sume, that the Eskimo harpoon has in the first place a smaller head, and in the se-
cond place walrus ivory is available from which the head may be wrought. The
Makah have no ivory, and the pieces of bone or antler which they employ are not
large enough to permit the carving out of a solid head. They are in a sense compelled
to piece their device together in two sections. The harpoon-heads of this whole
region, even to the salmon gigs, are made on this same plan, by binding two ele-
ments together. Such porpoise and salmon harpoons are described by Boas (1909,
pp. 489-495, figures 156, 157). The porpoise harpoon which Professor Boas
figures however, has riveting in place of lashings to hold the two segments of the
head together.

The method of assembling the parts of the whaling head is shown in a gen-
eral way in Swan's work, especially in his figure 4. The details may be seen in the
drawings appended herewith (figure 12; .and also Plate 8, c and rf.) The separate
parts of the head are shown in drawings a and b, figure 12, with the complete head
below.

I am not certain about the jnirpose of the external wrappings of cherry-bark
found in this device, and the coating of spruce gum. The gum may be primarily
for the purpose of glossing over the string wrappings, and making the head smooth.
This is indicated by Boas' account (1909, p 488). Smoothness would decrease the
resistance, as the head is driven into the quarry, and enable the huntsman to plant
the weapon much more deeply. It was very important to wound the animal as
severely as possible at the first thrust, for this made the consequent fight much

32 Waterman [Vol. 1

shorter. With luck a harpooner could at the first blow drive his weapon into the
huge bulk of the whale clear to the lungs. The intention in applying the wrap-
pings and the gum may also have been to exclude the water. The lines on shiji-
board which are subject to immersion, are carefully wrapped with canvas and
covered with pitch ("parcelled, served and pitched"). This makes them last five
times as long. In the present case, excluding the water was even more important,
because sinew lashings become loosened and "give" when wet. The cherry-bark
lashings are very smooth and glossy, and inasmuch as several feet, or several yards
of the lanyard follow the head into the tissues of the animal, the lessening of fric-
tion is undoubtedly important.

A word about mussel-shell harpoon blades may not be out of place. When the
fact is recalled that the entire central part of the blade was cut out, to enable it to
fit over the lashings of the head, it seems that the mussel-shell blade must have
proven a very weak and fragile thing. The material of the shell itself is, of course,
extremely brittle. After the blade was firmly gummed in place, the gum was cleaned
away from the edges, and these were thoroughly sharpened. Brittle material often
shows astonishing penetrating powers, when driven with a sharp impact. Flint, for
example, makes a very effective tip for arrows. Dr. Saxton Pope, at the University
of California, found by experiment that the obsidian-tipped arrow would pene-
trate further into animal tissue than a steel-tipped arrow would. The reason he
ascribes for this fact is that the flint head, being serrated, cuts a way and clears
an opening for the shaft, better than the thin steel blade does. I dare say the
mussel-shell harpoon blade inflicted a deeper wound on the whole than the more
modern steel blade which has replaced it. even though the shell blade may often
have been shattered in the process. The shattering in such material does not come
until after the imjiact is completed, and the wound inflicted. In other words the
inflicting of the wound is almost instantaneous, while the shattering of the head, if
it does shatter requires an instant or two of time. This accounts for the fact that
a delicate fiint-arrow-point can be driven into a thick buffalo skull, or vertebra, as
set forth bv Wilson". It must be remembered that the blade of the harpoon has
no part in holding tlie animal. This is entirely tlie function of the bone barbs. The
sinew lanyard is most painstakingly attached to these devices of bone, for any fail-
ure in the coherence of these elements means the loss of the quarry. The coating
of spruce gtnii, on the other hand, is all that holds the blade in its place. The blade
is thus attached with only sufficient firmness to make certain that it will not come
loose as the harpoon is brandished. It will, of course, stand shocks of all degrees,
as long as they are directed from the front, until it flies to pieces from impact.

The harpoon head is kept in a sheath made of a rectangular piece of cedar bark.
This is folded over across its middle. The ends are frayed out for several inches,
and fine shreds of cedar-bark are worked across in plain twining (called tc'iba'tyu.
cf. tci'bat,=canoe-mat). Several harpoon heads are taken along on each trip, each
one enclosed in a separate sheath. The collection of heads is kept in a special

"1901, pp. .=)13-531 Moorolioml, in his ■Stuni. Ai;.- in NcHli At
quotes Wilson's paper at somo lengtli, and ivprcKluc's {\\u plintti;;
hisoii. with delicatf flint points flrivoii into tlu'in.

1920]

Makah Indii

basket, called ha'^iL (Plate 5). This bag or basket is of checkerwork, and has
a flaring top. The basket in which ordinary fishing tackle is kept, is made in the
same weave, but is rectangular in shape, without the flaring upper portion.

3 • 4 ____ r:5^/0

12 15

Fig. 12 — Diagram showing the assembling of the parts of the whaling harpoon-liead :
b, the cutting edge uf mnssel-shell or metal ; r, the bone hafts or barbs.

the complete head ;

Element
Barbs (a, 1, 2)
Blade (6)
Lanyard (c, 18)
Cherry-bark {c,21)
Spruce gum

N0MENCL.\TUBE

Sxcan
tsa-kwat (p. 21)
kut-so-wit
kluks-ko

Present Informant
ts'a'kwAt (= antler)

Lu'ksku

tLexa'paL

I.Ak'il'tubc

34 Waterman [Vol. 1

METHOD OF ASSEMBLING PARTS

The haftB (1 and 2) are brought together along the line 6-7. A wide groove, 3-4, eirtending around these
hafts, serves to hold in place a wrapping of sinew strands. These strands are derived from the sinew lan-
yard, the end of which is "uniayed" and the separate elements fitted over the hafts. These strands are first
wound around the pair of hafts as around a spool. Then a turn is taken in the transverse direction between
the t\vo hafts, forming what a seaman would call a "seizing"'. A socket, 5-6, between the forward ends of the
barbs, is for the reception of the blade, h. From the points indicated by the numbers 7 and S, the hafts are
caused to diverge. A groove or channel, 9. in one of these hafts, when imited with a similar channel in the
opposite barb, forms a hole or socket for the reception of the pointed tip of the yew harpoon-shaft. The rear
projection of the hafts (10, 11) acts as barbs, to prevent the head from being piUled out of the animal.

Great care is taken with the disposition of the ends of the lanyard, over the harpoon-head. At least one
heavy strand Is brought through the socket at the point indicated by the number 6 (see also Plate 8), and is
worked in an ingenious fashion under the other wrappings. This makes it certain that the lanyard can by no
chance pull away from the barbs. When the strands are disposed over the head to the satisfaction of the
artificer, the whole head is wmmd with strips of wildcherry bark (numbered 21 in the diagraml.

At this time the blade. 6, is inserte<l in the proper socket (5-6). The edge 15-16 fits over the lashings of
the head. The edge nmnbered 14-15 rests against the turn of sinew cord which passes over the point 6. A
thin wedge of wood is driven between the surface of the blade and the front tip of the hafting (13, Fig a or c).
The blade is then fastened more secfirely in place with spruce-gum. A solid coating of the gum is then ap-
plied over the whole head, making it very smooth. The gum is scraped away from the edges of the blade,
which are very painstakingly sharpened. The surface of this spruce-gum coating is as smooth and glossy as
varnisli.

The front end of the lanyard, near the harpoon-head, is served with nettle-fiber string (c, 19). Beginning
at the point 18, the nettle-string wrapping is replaced by a continuous wrapping or "parceling" of wild-cherry
bark, which covers its entire length. In some specimens, however, the serving of nettle-flber string goes the
entire length of the lanyard.

THE WHALING LANYARD

Notes on the lanyard contained in previous accounts

The lanyard is a strong rope of whale sinew, an inch or more in diameter, very
carefully and smoothly laid, served with string made of nettle fiber, and covered
with a continuous spiral wrapping of strips of wild-cherry bark or nettle-fiber string.
The free end is worked very neatly into a loop (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 16; Swan, pp.
19, 20, 39).

The Vancouver Island tribes make such lanyards of sea-lion gut, split, cleaned,
and dried, and rolled into a hard round cord. These cords are wrapped spirally
with string made of nettle-fiber (Curtis, Vol. 9, p. 5-i).

BUOYS OR FLOATS

Features of the buoy or sealskin float described by other writers
Buoys made of sealskin are attached to the harpoon line. They have the pur-
pose of retarding the whale, and of making the carcass float after the animal's
death. Such a float consists of the skin of a hair-seal, turned with the hair inward,
made water-tight, and inflated (Curtis, Vol. 11, pp. 31, 33, 35; Swan, p. 20). The
valve for inflatation (according to one author) is at the left flipper (Curtis, Vol. 11,
p. 33). These floats are painted in various simple patters with red ochre
(Swan p. 30).

The male hair-seal supply the strongest buoys. The skins can be obtained at
anv season of the year, and are equally good at all times. The hide or pelt,
tuqwA'k, is stripped from the animal with as little cutting as possible. The head
and front flippers are cut away and the body encircled about halfway down its
length. The skin from the front half of the animal is then "peeled off" in a for-
ward direction, turning the hide inside out. This skin is then carefully scraped
to get the "grease" off. Well scraped skins last better and are more pliable.
After the scraping, the skin is usually smoked, which turns it a soft brown in
color. The heles left by removing the head and flippers of the animal are stopped
up in the following way (see figure 13): A plug or spool of wood is inserted in
the orifice, and the loose hide carefully "gathered" around it, as smoothly as

1920]

Makah Indians

Pio. 13 — The float or buoj- : a, the complete float with its attachments ;
and plug for inflation. Diameter at widest part, 17 inelies (43 cm).

&, detail drawing showing the nipple

NOMENCLATURE

Lower figure
a. Buoy, tukwa'kap 'iL (= . . . . outside).

1. Folds of hide, hihtqsAqso, bunched or gathered around a wooden spool.

2. Wooden spool, atctska'pub (<atct'L = something put between other things:

"filler").

3. Wrapping of gut string, which binds the folds of hide to the spool.

4. Yew-wood peg or skewer, kndi/tcskapub (= holding something in place). This

prevents the wrapping of gut string from slipping over the spool.

5. Rope of spruce-root, or cedar-fiber.

6. Lashing or serving of sinew string, batLska'pub, attaching the buoy-rope to

the buoy.

7. Nipple, or perforated spool, by which the buoy is inflated.

8. Plug or stopper, hukska'pub (<hi'kstcu = to screw in: this stopper fits the

opening very tightly, to prevent the buoy from becoming deflated).

Upper figure

7. Nipple.

8. Stopper.

9. Folds of hide.

10. Wrappiing of gut string, which fastens the hide to the spool.

36 Waterman [Vol. 1

possible. These folds are then fastened down to the spool by winding with gut
string. A peg or skewer is then thrust transversely through the folds of hide, to
prevent this wrapping from slipping over the spool. The plug at one of the
front flippers is perforated down its axis. This opening serves for the inflation
of the float. When filled with air, the hole is stoppered with a small wooden
plug or "cork" of yew wood. Accidental leaks in the buoy, such as those made
by the hunter in killing the animal, are stopped by plugging with a piece of rope.
Such a mend or patch is called q'a'tstcu (q'a'tscttL,:^o make a difficult patch, or
repair). A cedar or spruce-root line is attached ito the buo}^, being strongly lashed
at either end to it with sinew. The free ends of this rope serve to attach the buoy
to the whaling line. As is usual with Makah lines, the ends are reduced in size,
tapering down at their tips. This makes the line easier to tie, but must apparently
reduce its strength. These buoys are kept in a flattened condition. Before be-
ing used, they are soaked in water, and inflated. This work is done when on the
whaling grounds (see below).

The principal features of the ornamentation of seal-skin buoys can be seen
in the figure. The areas where the head and flippers once were are colored solid
with red ochre, Lixtcc'hibis, mixed with rotten salmon roe, a'tepab. These areas
are surrounded with several concentric circles. In addition to these simple orna-
mented areas, figures are sometimes added to represent the thunder-bird, LukLu'tc,
or the "lightning animal, "xexe'tu'k; the latter a creature having the shape of a
snake, striped transversely with black and white, who travels through the air.
These designs are not totemic, but are intended in some mysterious way to make
the buoy more deadly to the whale.

The pursuit of the hair-seal whose hides supplied the buoys was itself an oc-
cupation not devoid of excitement. The two pronged harpoon used for this purpose,
and for porpoise hunting, and the method of handling the canoe, are described in
detail by Boas (1909, pp. 488-4.9.'5 ; .500-50 !•, 506) and need not be gone into here.
The Makah used also to waylay the seal at their "haul-up" places. They could
sometimes kill a seal at 75 feet, by hurling the harpoon, though they usually cast
at a distance of 30 feet. Sometimes a big bull when harpooned would show fight,
and threaten to tear a canoe to pieces. In that case, they bent a buoy onto the har-
poon line and let it go, picking the quarry up after he had died of his wounds.
They usually carried one or more buoys in a canoe for this purpose and to use as
life-preservers in case of a capsize.

Swan (p. SO.) tells of deep caverns in tlie cliffs, in which the seals congregate.
He says briefly that the Indians go in with a torch and kill numbers by clubbing
them. The actual procedure has some picturesque features. There are ten or
more of these caverns in the vicinity of Cape Flattery, including some on Tatoosh
Island, and certain of them are of enormous dimensions, extending into the bowels
of the Cape for some hundreds of yards. A cliff containing several of these caves
may be seen in Plate 30. The hunter tied his hair (which was formerly worn long)
in a knot on the top of his head. This knot was firmly wrapped with sinew, and a
skewer run through to keep the wrapping from slipping off. Into this knot of hair

1920] Makah Indians 37

long splints of spruce pitch-wood (duqwi'ets) were thrust, so that they stood up
vertically. Tile best pitch-wood was selected for this purpose, dried, and split
into fine pieces. These "lights" or splints were two feet long. When this appar-
atus was securely in place on his head, the hunter took his sealing club, lighted the
splints at the top, lowered himself into the sea, and swam into the cave. The light
of tlu- burning splints blinded and stupified the seals, and enabled tiie hunter to
club them easily. When he had killed five or six, he tied them together, took tlu'
ends of the thong in his teeth, and towing his kill behind him, swam out again,

A number of years ago a hunter went with a companion to certain sea cave
which has a very small opening, a sort of oblique slit, very narrow and difficult
to get through. When he was well inside, the surf put his light out, leaving him
in ink}' blackness. There was a tremendous and incessant swishing of waves in the
darkness on every side, and the hunter, becoming confused, had no means of knowing
which way the entrance lay. The companion in the canoe outside the cave foolishly
idled most of the afternoon, waiting for the hunter to appear. Then he was driven
away by a sudden squall. The next day it was calm again, and a rescue party went
to the cave. A volunteer put on his head the usual outfit of splints, swam far into
the depths of the cavern, and there found our hero sitting placidly on a shelf of
rock. When his light went out, he "hauled up" like a seal, and with true Indian
patience, sat there without light, fire, raiment or food, until help came.

LINES AND ROPES

Boas o-ives a complete account of the manufacture of the various kinds of
ropes and lines (1909, pp. .S69-382), including the gathering and preparation of
fibres. The manufacture of lines is also referred to by Curtis, (Vol. 9, p. 1 tC ;
Vol. 11. p. 16) and Swan (]). "21). It may be well to merely enumerate the prin-
ciple varieties. The stem of the kclji is dried and used for fish-lines. String of
nettle fibre is sometimes used for the same ))urpose. The harpoon lanyard is
manufactured from whale sinew, wound or served witli nettle-fibre string, and
covered with a wrapping of cherry-bark. These lanyards are beautiful examiilcs
of workmanship. Fine lines, which are. however, very strong, are made from
sea-lion intestine (called tskikyu'p by the Makah). which is split and rolled into
a strincr. These lines are used just as they are for many purposes, for example,
for bow strings and for the halyards of the canoe sail. Ropes consisting of a
number of strands of this material are sometimes manufactured. Bear-guts are
sometimes used in a similar way Curtis mentions a rope of gut. twisted spirally
with nettle-fibre string, as being made on Vancouver Island. Lines are made of
seal-skin and elk-hide. The hide is cut s|)irally in :\ long narrow stri]). and this
strip rolled or twisted into a thong. Such thongs can be used as they are. or
twisted or jilaited into heavier lines. Bark fibres are sointinus made into ropes.
The heavy lines, such as are used in whaling tackle, consist either of spruce-root
fibres, or slender cedar withes. Very long cedar twigs somewhat tliicker than a
peiieil are ent from the tree, being very eartfully selected. The bark is removed.

38 Waterman [Vol. 1

and by heating, twisting and working, the fibres are separated until the twig is
practically as soft and pliable as rope. These withes are then ready for use,
for example, in fastening the thwarts in a canoe as described above (page 21). In
this condition, they are stronger than hemp rope, and five times as durable.
They were also woven into excellent large ropes, which were very smoothly and
evenly laid in three strands. These various kinds of lines are used in differ-
ent ways in the whaling tackle, largely depending upon the supply of each that
is available. Towing us usually done with elk-hide ropes, but if lots of line is
needed, cedar is used to piece out.

THE WHALE HUNT

The hunting of the whale has for the white observer two distinct aspects.
From our point of view the matter of greatest concern would be the arrange-
ment of the tackle within the boat, and the methods of approaching and striking
the quarrj% From the Indian standpoint, however, the reall)' important matter
is the proper observance before and during the hunt of various cermonial per-
formances for procuring help from the spirits. The Indians, to be sure, see with
the very greatest care to all practical matters connected with whaling expeditions,
but they seem to look upon the religious performances as much more essential to
success. Secrecy in the religious preparations is verr commonly observed. Curtis
in his volume on the Nootka gives a great deal of information about whale hunt-
ing. Quite an elaborate account of a whaling expedition, an account which describes
both the ceremonialism and the operations of killing and disposing of the quarry,
will be found iri the same volume, pp. 19-34. This passage is the story of a
Nootka hero Umik and his successor. Swan gives some information, very briefly.
We may discuss first the ceremonies, the outstanding features of which may be
summarized as follows.

Religions observances connected with xchate-htinting as described bij other mithors.

Help from the spirits. Possession of a "medicine," or power of a spiritual
nature, is necessary before a man can sucessfully captain a whaling canoe (Curtis.
Vol. 9, p. 9; Vol. 11, p. 16).

Bathing. This is a most necessary part of the preparation for a hunt. The
seeker after "power" goes early every morning to a freshwater lake or pond. En-
tering the water at dawn, he sits down until the skin is "soaked" well. Then he
stands up and rubs himself with bunches of hemlock twigs, about one span in length,
beginning the operation on the left side of his body. When the needles are worn
off of one bunch, and the bare twigs covered with blood, he wades ashore, takes
a second bunch, and rubs his right side. He continues this until the four bunches
with which he has provided himself are all used up, (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 20).

Imitating the xvhale. After rubbing, the candidate dives down, staying under
as long as possible. Mention is made of blood bursting from a bather's ears from long
submergence. He does this four times, and on emerging each time, he blows a
mouthful of water toward the center of the lake, trying to make a sound resembling
the blowing of the whale (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 20).

1920] Makah Indians 39

His movements are always quiet, and slow; "so that the wliale will act in' the
same way" (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 25). [Tlie point is that otherwise the whale, when
struck, may thresh about and knock the canoe to fragments, or may set off at high
speed and tow the party twenty miles to sea.]

When a whaler's wife is helping him at Iiis devotions, she sometimes holds the
end of a rope which is tied about his waist [representing the harpoon line.] In this
condition he sings whaling songs, and walks around her, with the slow undulating
movements of the whale, the woman repeating over and over again, "This is the,
way the whale will act!" (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 38).

Mention is made by Curtis of a performance by a whaler, in which he stands
erect in a pond, shaking a rattle, and holding his left hand out with the thumb stick-
ing up "like the fin of a whale" (Vol. 1 1 , p. 37).

Prayers. Whalers pray at night in whispers for success. Mention is made
of "Four Chiefs/' to whom they pray (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 28). They are also
reported to beg the sun for success. [The present writer's informant insists that
they direct their prayers to Daylight, tL'isi'xaq, not to the sun ; the word for sun
being tl.'isi'xa'pi.L]. They also pray directly to the whales, both in the prepara-
tion-period, and after the animal is struck by the harpoon. The following praj'er
of a Clayquot bather deserves to be quoted at length. It is given in Curtis' volume
on the Nootka (Vol. 11, p. 37).

"Whale, I want you to come near me, so that I will get hold of your heart
and deceive it, so that I will have strong legs and not be trembling and excited
when the whale comes and I spear him. Whale, you must not run out to sea when
I spear you. Whale if I spear you, I want my spear to strike your heart. Har-
poon, when I use you, I want you to go to the heart of the whale. Whale, when I
spear at you and miss you, I want you to take hold of my spear with your hands.
Whale, do not break my canoe, for I am going to do good to you. I am going to
put eagle-down and cedar bark in your back."

After the whale is struck, songs are sung to make him "come along" easily.
"When the whale is weak and going ashore, he likes to hear the whaler sing,"
(Curtis. Vol. 11, p. 37). These songs themselves are in the nature of prayers.
The following is an example: "It is good for you to go quickly toward the shore,
so that the young men may see you quicklj', for they all wish to see you." (Nootka
song, Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 32). Series consisting of one hundred "towing songs" are
mentioned.

The followinc prayer is utteered, according to Curtis, after a whale is har-
pooned: "Whale, I have given you what you wish to get — my good harjjoon. And
now you have it. Please hold it with your strong hands. Do not let go. Whale,
turn toward the fine beach of Yahksis, and you will be proud to see the young men
come down on the fine sandy beach of my village at Yahksis to see you ; and the
young men will say to one another: 'What a great whale he is! What a fat w-hale
he is ! WHiat a strong whale he is !' And you, whale, will be proud of all that vou
will hear them say of your greatness. Whale, do not turn outward, but hug the
shore, and tow mc to the beach of my village of Yahksis. for when you come ashore
there, young men will cover your great body with bluebill duck feathers, and with
the down of the great eagle, the chief of all birds ; for this is what vou are wish-
ing, and this is what you are trying to find from one end of the world to the other,
every daj' you are traveling and spouting." (Vol. 11, p. 23).

Use of Skeletons and Corpses. All sources of information mention a curious
practice of using skeletons, or skulls, or corpses, during the ceremonial bathing.
One of Curtis' Quilliutc whalers used to take a skull from a burial |)lacc. tic it on

40 V.'atcrinaii [Vol. 1

a rope about his waist, .and tlien swim about, "sounding" and "blowing" like a
whale. That was why he was successful, taking over forty whales in all, (V^ol. 9, p.
147). In some cases skeletons from grave boxes are "joined up" and suspended
somewhere in the woods. Prayers are directed to them, and the}' are carried on the
whaler's back as he bathes. The arms of the skeleton are tied together behind its
head, and the whaler puts his head through the arms, getting the cadaver on his back
(Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 2,5). Then he swims about in the pond, diving and spouting.

In former times, fresh corpses were used in this way (Curtis, Vol. 11, pp. 103-
1 10). The body must be that of a male, dead not more than four days. Occasionally
a small boy could be killed for the purpose. Sometimes the corpse was skinned,
by cutting along the front of the body and the inside of the hips, the whaler diving
with the skin tied on his own body (Curtis, Vol, 11, p. 39). When a corpse was
used, the lower part of the legs and the forearms were cut off. A pad of rose-
bushes and nettles was put on the whaler's back, and the body was placed upon that
pad, the back of the corpse against the whaler's back. One time a man put a
corpse on his back in preparation for bathing, face forward, and it took a death grip
on his throat, and killed liim. When visiting a grave-box to get a dead body, the
whaler walked with an undulating movement (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 39).

Taboos. Whalers arc very careful in observing taboo in connection with
women. It is best to avoid any kind of contact or association with women, for
some of them might be ceremonially unclean (Curtis, Vol, 11, p. 23). The whaler's
wife helps him with his vigils, but the two sleep in separate places, and avoid all
mention or thought of sex matters (Curtis, Vol, 11, p, 31), The woman bathes, as
does her husband, spouting like a whale, sometimes with a skeleton on her back.
At the time M'hen the whaler embarks for the Inmt, the woman lies down with a new
mat over her, and does not move, or eat, or drink, until her husband returns (Curtis,
Vol. 11, p. 35). The whaler himself never eats whale meat, lest he h.ive difficulty
in killing more whales (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 18).

Ceremonial Dress. The whaler and his wife wear a head dress of split
feathers and ornaments resembling thee "saddle" of the whale (Curtis, Vol. 11.
pp. 38, 39. These head-feathers and some other decorations are shown in Curtis'
photographs, Vol. 11, pp. 20, 22, 28, Folio, Plate 382, 395). When putting to sea
in charge of his boat, the whaler wears hemlock twigs on his forehead, and a bear-
skin robe (Curtis, Vol. 11, pp. 9, 30). Whalers tie their hair in a sort of knot or
club at the back of the head (Swan, p. 17).

Astronomical considerations connected icith whale-luinting. \Vhalers observe
the phases of the moon in connection with their preparatory observances. All
through the winter they bathe when the moon is waxing (Curtis, Vol. 9. p. 115).
They start on their expedition when they see the first new moon "in the month of
Mav" (Curtis, Vol. 11. p. ll). In connection with the feasts accompanying a suc-
cessful hunt, mention is made of gull feathers being stuck into the "saddle"' or
"hump " of the whale, to rei)resent the moon, in the phase it presents at the mo-
ment f Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 10). The supernatural power usually comes to a man
"with the changing year." [That is, the winter solstice: direct observation by
sighting past a tree or a boulder is relied upon for ascertaining the occurrence of
this phenomenom (Curtis. Vol. 9, p. 115)].

Dreams. Dreams play a part in the whaler's life. According to my inform-
ant, a man in bathing often scrubs himself with some plant about which lie Iiad
dreamed; seaweed, for example. As mentioned by Curtis (Vol. 9, p. 115) the
whalers wait for a vision of getting a whale, and then start on their ex])edition.

1920] Makah Indians 41

ARRANGEJIEXT OF EQUIPMENT FOB WHALING.

Curtis in volume 11, p. 17 of his work, gives a brief description of wlialing
methods I have been able to find no complete account of the actual pursuit of the
whale, so the matter may perhaps be gone into here. The stowing of the complicated
equipment in the canoe involves a very high technique. We may consider this mat-
ter first. ^lention has alreadj^ been made of the "spaces" into which the canoe is
divided by the thwarts. These spaces are apportioned for the different operations
of the hunt. They are indicated in the accompanying diagram (Figure 1-i).

The most important man in the whaling canoe is the harpooner. He is the
leader of the party, and captains the expedition. His native title is y'u'tax, hunter
or searcher. His position is in the bow of the boat, where he takes his stand with
his weapon. The harpoon itself is sixteen feet long, and carries on its point the
bone-barbed harpoon-head, which is edged with mussel shell (see page 32 above
for a description of the weapon). To the harpoon is attached about four fathoms
of lough sinew rope, with a noose at the end. The space at the bow where the
hunter stands is kept clear of everything so that the chief performer shall not be
hampered in handling his weapon. Things "happen" very quickly when the whale
is struck, and any confusion of the tackle, or a momentarj' fouling, may mean the
loss of the whale, or the capsizing of the boat. The man in the next adjoining
space abaft the hunter's position, on the port side, has as his single duty the prompt
"bending on" of a buoy together with eight or ten fathoms of heavy cedar rope. All
of this tackle is tied bj' means of a reef-knot (t'a'biqcL) to a loop at the end of
a sinew leader. As the whale goes down, after being struck, one section of lina
after another is bent to the first one. Sealskin floats, qwtso':tAs(c cf.qwiso'tL .=
bladder), also are attached by special knots, at intervals of two fathoms. The whale
is always harpooned from the right hand or port side of the boat, and it is the duty
of the men seated along this side to help clear this tackle and get it overboard. No
"ties" or knots are made between different sections of the gear, until each new sec-
tion is safely over the side and clear of the boat. The whale takes the line out
very rapidly at first, and if the tackle were joined up in the boat, any delay in get-
ting it over the side would cause the boat to be jerked under water, or would cause
a capsize. In addition to the harpoon and its complete outfit of floats and lines,
the boat carries a sort of bone-pointed lance (butu'ysk) some four or five feet long,
for use in dispatching the whale at close quarters, bailers (xutcA'k), wooden boxes
(tcA'xsyb) of drinking water, a large number of extra floats, towing lines of elk-
hide, cedar rope (tla'cuk), and food for the crew for at least two days. All of this
equipment takes up room. The stowing of the apparatus so that it can be gotten
out easily and rapidly and at the same time not interfere with the crew, is a highly
developed art. Each pair of paddlers sit on the upturned end of a canoe-mat,
tc'i'b'at, (=something put under one) which is laid down on the flooring, turned
up behind the thwart, and folded forward so as to cover it. Thus the mat serves to
cushion the seat, and also serves the purpose of preventing the tackle in tliat ))ar-
ticular compartment from working astern and getting mixed u|i with other parts of
the equipment, or interfering with the bailing of the canoe.

42 ]]'ateriiian [Vol. 1

THE PURSUIT OF THE WHALE.

It is the Indian belief that a "run" of whales occurs during a certain season of
the year, corresponding to the run of salmon, or halibut. The species called sixwa'ox
or "sore faces" (see below) are the first to run, migrating northward. The whalers
used to put off from shore at sunset, in a spell of whaling weather, so as to get on
the whaling grounds at daybreak. They usually encountered whales travelling north-
ward along the coast. The various kinds of whales they recognize are as follows :

California grey whale. Rachianectes glaucus, called by Swan che-che-wid. This
is the kind most frequently taken.

Sperm whale, called by Swan kots-ke, meaning, according to my infromation.
"having something upon the head". There are several species of these, including
the cachalot {Rhyseter macrocephalus) and the saw-toothed whale (Ziphius carros-
tris), which my informant does not distinguish one from the other.

Right whale (Balaenoptera artifera?), called itc'y'p "old one" (Swan gives
yakh'-yo-bad-di, not explained).

....Humpback whale {Mcgaptera veisibilis), called sixwa'ox, or "sore faces"
(<si'xwi=sore). This variety is said to be similar to the right whale in propor-
tions, and "runs" in the spring. The oil obtained from them is reddish.

Finback whale {Balaenoptera david.iom or B. vilifera). called ka'owad, "stick-
ing up in the middle" ( <ka"ap==protruding: apa'owAd=in the middle).

Sulphur-bottom whale {Balaenoptera sulfurea), called kwaqwawe'axtLi, "noisy
tail" (Swan gives kwa-kwau-yak-t'hle, not explained).

Killerwhale, or "blackfish" {Orca). called klasqo'kajiix ( <klaska'piL=sniooth ;
-tL, generic).

When on the ground where whales might be expected, the seal-skin floats,
which after soaking to make them soft, have been packed into the canoe in a flat-
tened condition, are gotten out and inflated. The harpooner, takes his stand in the
bow with his sixteen foot weapon, its barbed head, to which is attached the sinew
lanyard, in readiness at its tip. The lanyard is "caught" to the shaft in several
places with cedar bark lashing, which breaks very easily. He usually plants his
right foot firmly at a point forward of the bow seat, and rests his left foot on a pair
of short braces at the stem of the boat. This posture is called yttsa'wad (<ye'tscd
=^0 kick). In this position, closely scanning the water ahead of him, he repeats a
prayer. It is sometimes vei'y hard to find whales, and to come up with them. At
other times no trouble of any kind is experienced. It all depends, say the Indians,
on the bathing a man has done. The whale when seen by the Indian is usually fol-
lov/ing a school of small fish. Coming up for breath, he rolls forward under water
and disappears from sight, a moment later appearing again and "blowing." His
motion is regular, and deliberate. The canoe cuts across his course and "lays" for
him. When it seems possible to meet him in one dash, the steersman, tLttca', gives
to the crew the word "hatsLtsatL" (come on!"). This steersman is usually an elder-
ly man, with a great deal of experience. The idea is to run up along side of the
whale as he emerges, so that he is to the right of the canoe. Combined luck and
skill are required to bring the canoe sharply alongside of the quarry, and there is

1920] Makah Indians 43

usually not an instant to spare. When close to the whale the starboard man on the
forward seat, spoken of as the kaqai'yuwaxs (from his position in the forward
"space") has the right to give the word c*v', ("now throw!"). The hunter is more
or less guided by the judgement of the men behind him, all of whom have their eyes
on the quarry. Sometimes the canoe runs fairly upon the animal as he emerges,
the harpooneer striking him from a distance of six feet.

In brandishing his weapon, the harpooneer keeps his weight well forward on
his feet, to insure steadiness. He swings the harpoon up over his head, turning his
body towards the right side, the palms of both hands, in which he grasps the shaft,
turned outxcard. This does not seem to be the natural position for a lunge, until it is
tried, experimentally. This posture as a matter of fact gives much greater power,
control, and freedom of eifort, and enables the hunter to strike downward with all
his might, and yet recover his balance quickly. This latter is a very essential point.
Old Anderson, of Neah Bay, nichnamed dc'cyk ("strong"), once, in trying to regain
his balance after striking a whale, stepped on a coil of the harpoon-line and got his
foot entangled in it. The next moment he was twitched off his feet and pulled over-
board, a bight of line around his ankle. A stricken whale when he "sounds," is
sometimes gone for fifteen minutes, and when Anderson's friends saw him go down
with the whale they thought he would certainly be drowned. He managed to get a
grip on the line, however, and disengaged his foot, and came up blowing. He lived
to harpoon many a whale after this adventure.

The best time to strike the whale is just as his head becomes submerged, as he
"turns over" preparatory to going down. If struck while his tail is in the air, he is
likely to knock the canoe into bits. Quite commonly a whale when struck flirts water
over the boat until it is completely hidden from spectators, and filled half full. One
switch of the tail, if it "lands", has been known to knock the bow off a canoe, and
split it open from stem to stern. The inflated biioys in case of such a catastrophe
are very convenient to hang to, until something can be done with the boat. Cases
have been known, in which whale hunters caught in such an evil case, threw a line
over the boat so as to draw the pieces together, then put some floats under the gun-
wales to buoy the boat up, and finally caulked the seam with a piece of shirt, and
paddled home, after bailing out.

The moment the whale is struck, the man behind the harpooner throws over
a float, instantly. In the interval of a second or two, he bends this float to the har-
poon line. Meanwhile the other members of the crew back water with all their might,
to get clear of their huge quarry. As he "sounds" and takes out the line, additional
floats are bent on, new lines being added as the quarry goes into the depths. As
many as thirteen floats may be attached to one line. The sections of line last ad-
ded are lighter, since there is less strain upon them. Last of all a small buoy is
added to serve as a "marker," attached by a very light cord. This buoy remains
near the surface, and when the whale starts upward from his long submergence, it
bobs quickly to the surface, long before the whale himself appears. The canoe
races forward to that point, ready to plant another harpoon. Meanwhile, signals
are made to any other canoe in the vicinity, that the quarry has been struck. One

44 M'aicrman [Vol. 1

of the crew stands up and calls "hya*o" and sticks up a blanket on a pole. The
successful hunter promises the other crew some certain definite part of the animal,
for example, the tongue, for their help in killing the game. Every harpoon that is
struck into the whale carries a buoy, and as the number of these buoys increases the
drag on the animal's progress is soon very serious. A wounded whale who has been
struck a number of times, often cannot get more than six feet below the surface,
hampered as he is by these buoyant floats. However, the huge animal if often ex-
traordinarily tenacious of life, and what turns out to be a weary fight for the tired
canoemen, continues for hours. An old Indian, bvts't'kxa, nicknamed Santa Ana.
once volunteered to ride a badly wounded whale. He clung fast to the lines, and
dispatched the cetacean with a butcher-knife, by means of repeated hacking. When
the whale "sounded" he clung fast and "went under" with him, stabbing him mean-
while as best he could. The Makah used to practice diving and holding the breath
so as to be prepared for emergencies.

Tlie actual arrangement of the tackle attached to the harpoon-head seems to
have diiifercd somewhat with different tribes. Curtis gives the following notes on
the succession of elements in the Ions; string of tackle.

■lilliute tribe (Vol. 9,
Harpoon head

P-

lie)

ootka tribe (Vol. 11. p. 16)
Harpoon head

-i fathoms of sinew

line

4 fathoms of sinew line

Float

10 fathoms of cedar

line

8 fathoms of IXU inch plaited cedar lini

Float

30 fathoms of line

20 fathoms of % '^1^ I'^c

Float

50 fathoms of line

30 fathoms of Iv, incii line

Float

After the whale is dead, a certain member of the crew, the "diver." goes down
as described by Curtis, and fastens a small line to the creature's lower jaw. This
is then passed through the whale's upper lip, and made fast to the tow line. Pulling
on this line jams the whale's lower jaw against the upper one and in this way his
mouth is kept closed. They say that when the mouth is closed the body does not
become water-logged and is towed more easily.

^^'hen the whale is newly killed some difficulty is experienced in kcejjing him
afloat. The animal drowns, of course; that is, the lungs fill with water; and he
tends to sink outright. He often disappears below the surface, being sustained only
by the floats (see Plate 4). Upwards of twenty such floats are required for that
purpose. These are attached separately to harpoon heads, and stuck into the head
of the carcass. If the floats are too few in number, the whale is correspondingly
deeper in the water.

1920] Makah Indians 45

DISPOSITION OF THE WHALE-CARCASS

All authorities mention the cutting up of the whale, and refer to rules bj- which
it was done. As far as I can discovjer the details are as follows. The whale, when
rowed ashore, is measured from blow-hole to hump. The unit consists of the dis-
tance the hunter can reach, from tip to tip of his fingers. The measurement, from
blow-hole to hump establishes che size of the whale. Then the proper width for the
"cuts" of blubber is computed. The cutting up of the whale is shown in figure 15.
The "hump" is the richest in oil, and belongs to the hunter. According to Curtis,
he sells it or gives it away, being afraid to eat it (see p. 1-0). The hump is called
yu'b-Atsk,=taboo-piece, (Swan's u'butsk, not explained) and is treated in a very
ceremonious manner, described by Swan very fully, the main point being that it is
set up on a sort of rack and left there lor a considerable time, being decorated mean-
time with eagle down, and feathers, (see above, p. 39). This "saddle" is re-
moved first of all. It is of the width already determined as being proper in the
light of the size of the whole carcass. A strip extending clear around the animal
at the point 5, (Fig 15), is next taken off. This belongs to the canoe which brought
the first assistance. The lower jaw, 8, goes to this party, and often the tongue also.
There are rules for the dividing of this tongue among the crew, the hunter or har-
pooner getting the largest piece. The material is not eaten, but the oil, which it
contains in large quantities, is extracted from it. The flipper, lulA'pt ("hand") is
eaten, and is often named in calling for assistance in the hunt. On the under side of
the whale is an area covered with long creases, three or four inches deep. This is
spoken of as the tsa-bA'kAk ("strips"), and is often "promised away" beforehand.
After the awards for assistance in the hunt are all made, the hunter gives away the re-
mainder of the carcass as he thinks fit. He himself keeps the tail (Curtis, Vol. 11, p.
37). There is some blubber on the flukes (see 7, b) and the remainder is of a jellv-like
consistency, like pigs-feet, when cooked. This distribution is the act so very char-
acteristic of the northwestern Indians: that is, the cutting up of the whale and the
distribution of the blubber is a form of potlatch. The donor knows to a pound what
everybody receives, and expects a return at a future date. The meat of the whale
is not removed, but the blubber (tl-'a'bas) is highly valued. This blubber is cut
with the short bone-pointed lance, butu'yek, mentioned above. It consists of a
straight handle 1 or 5 feet long, with a chisel, butkaiya':p, of elk-antler. A hand-
hold, su"Ats (^something one holds to) is cut in the top of the strip, and a line is
made fast. As one man wields the chopper, another pulls the blubber away with the
line, tei'ktup. Plate 6, (i, shows this operation. The hand-hold also serves in car-
rying the blubber (see Plate 6, h), The oil extracted from this blubber is highly
valued as a dressing for dried fish, and berry-cakes. After the oil is all extracted,
the blubber itself is dried and eaten, having a pleasant taste, suggesting rich pork,
though somewhat tougher. The dried blubber looks like citron, according to Swan.
The skin of the whale is very thin, almost like paper, and has no value to the Indian.
Under the skin are perpendicular fibres, called tl,i'dits, about l/j inch in diameter.
(See Plate 5, «)■ These are very rich in fat. and are removed and eaten raw, nr

46 Waterman [Vol. 1

boiled. They are quite palatable in their raw state, and children especially are said
to be fond of them.

There are many disagreeable features connected with the cutting up of the
whale, which other authors seemed to have passed over without mention. I presume
they are a necessary part of the account, however, if a true picture of the primitive
food-quest is to be presented. They may be mentioned briefly. The stomach of the
animal when he is killed usually contains from one to two tons of half-digested fish.
This material begins to decay almost at once, and the carcass soon begins to be
bloated, from the gases which accumulate. If two days are consumed in getting to
the land, the tongue begins to protrude, the carcass "floats high" in the water, and
the whale stinks desperately. It is the intestines that give rise to this odor, however,
not the blubber. Even a perfectly fresh whale stinks when he is opened. It is said
that the man who first opens the carcass on the beach is sometimes overcome by the
gases, which burst out, and "cause him to faint." The process of decay goes on
much more rapidly in the flesh than in the blubber, which keeps for an indefinite
period, even if not removed from the whale. The flesh can be removed from the
bones only after stripping off the blubber, which requires time. Possibly that is
the reason the flesh of the whale is not more generally utilized. Blubber which has
become rancid, tlirough overmuch delay, is tried out, and the oil is used for various
technological purposes, not for food. The bones, with the muscles and ligaments,
are left on the beach for the birds and other scavengers. All of the blubber, however,
down to that on the flukes, is carefully preserved.

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES CONNECTED WITH BRINGING IN THE WHALE

Formerly the whole village turned out to receive a whale, mostly, however,
from excitement, and interest. The whaler's wife came down and danced, and sang.
Eagle-down was placed upon the dead animal's hump, and on the blow-hole (Curtis,
Vol. 11, p. 36). Menstruant women and adolescent girls were supposed to stay in
the house, and not see the whale; otherwise, they would spoil the "luck." Before
cutting up the carcass, the songs of the successful hunter were chanted, led by his
father or his uncle. Those songs "were like prayers." An old experienced man
measured the whale and made the first cut. After the hump or saddle had been cut
off and taken to the house, it was set upon a rack and decorated with feathers, as
described by Swan (see above p. 45). For several days there were gatherings,
and numerous ceremonial performances. The old whalers sat facing the decorated
"saddle-piece" and each man sang his own whaling song. (Curtis, Vol. 11, p. 40).
The successful hunter often entertained the people by a performance, showing his
"power." A helper, with a rattle in the form of a bird, would begin to rattle and
sing the whaling songs belonging to his chief. The latter would enter, dressed in
ceremonial costume. My informant has seen a man dance completely clothed in
nettles, tied on. The performer in such ceremonies makes his entry in tim^ to the
music, and dances around the fire in a contra-clockwise direction. His movements
imitate those of the whale, and he heaves his way slowly around the fire, "blowing"
from time to time. He never stands upright until the circuit is completed.

1920] Makah Indians 47

No religious regard was ever paid to the bones, which were left on the beach.
Evidentl_v the courtesies extended to the taboo-piece or saddle, fulfilled all the neces-
sities. The skeleton of the whale lay at low water mark, and was slowly cleaned by
water-worms and sand-fleas. The whale, nevertheless, was supposed theoretically
to be a guest of the village, and to have appeared upon the scene of his own volition.

METHODS OF NAVIGATION

As already remarked, whaling expeditions often go clear out to sea, out of sight
of land. On the high seas at night, the Makah steer by the Pole-star. They never
get lost, even in a fog, for they are helped by the swells and the wind. In this
part of the Pacific the heave runs pretty consistently west and east. They know by
experience also that thick weather comes on when the wind is from the southeast.
So if the W'Cather is thick, they conclude that the wind is from that quarter. Clear
weather, on the other hand, is usually accompanied by winds from the west. By
considering all' of these matters, the whalers always manage to get back "somehow."

Some of the older men, who have spent a lifetime on the halibut banks, can locate
themselves even when out of sight of land by the appearance of the water and the
set of the "tide rips."

The following expressions are used by the Makah canoeman as terms of direc-
tion wliile on the water

To the left or "port", tcAba'tsp (cf. ka'tspa,=Ieft).
To the right or "starboard". tcAba'tsa'k (cf. katsaksp,^right).
Ahead, hitA'kwAd-dltsp (cf. hitA'kwAd, the bow space).
Astern, tL'I'tca'tsp (cf. tL'i'tca, the stern space).

The term iyexAxs is used in the sense of "here" or "there," a]iplying only to po-
sitions inside of a boat. On land, other terms are employed.

HISTORY or THE WHALING INDUSTRY

I suppose it would be impossible to discover which of the various coast tribes
originated the hunting of the whale. It is certain, however, that it sprang up
somewhere along the west coast of Vancouver Island. Probably the Nootka and
Clayoquot had as much to do as anybody with developing the industr3\ The art
is not found on the east coast of ^^ancouver Island, nor does it exist among the tribes
of Alaska, as the Haida or Tlingit. Whaling is practiced by the Quilliute and
Quinault, south of Cape Flattery, but the practice is unknown beyond their terri-
tory. Whales are spoken of in the accounts of the tribes living all along the coast
of Oregon and Washington, and whale products of various sorts are utilized, as they
are also in Alaska, but the tribes who actively pursue the big cetaceans arc those in the
vicinity of Capt Flattery and Vancouver Island. The Makah, who live near the south-
ern frontier of the region where whaling is practiced, would hardly be looked upon
(in the absence of positive proof) as the originators of the practice. All sources
agree, however, tliat they long ago attained first rate skill at it.

U'ateniian

[Vol. 1

About 1860 the ]\Iakah temporarily left off whaling. The reason was the enor-
mous profits to be derived at that time from pelagic sealing, at which pursuit also
they were highly skillful, and highly successful. About the year 1890 they resumed
their whaling practices, largely because by that time the Government protection of
the fur seal had reduced the profits of sealing. Many of the Makah tribe attained
distiiict success as seal poachers, until the Federal Government's increasingly strict
supervision of the animals made poaching impractical. Whaling is still carried on
at the present time, largely with their old tribal apparatus.

"ft ift

1-1- -Diagram showing the arrangement of the huntsmen and
their equipment in the whaling canoe. (Based in part on in-
formation contained in Curtis, vol. II, pp. 36, 37, 184). For
the native terminology for the thwarts and other parts see
figure 3; and uage No. 50, above.

A. Bow-space, hitA'kwAd, occupied by

the harpooner with his weapon
and four fathoms of sinew line.

1. Position of the harpooner.

B. Second space, kaqai'yuwAxs, laden

with 14 floats.

2. Position of the float tender.

3. Position of the diver.

C. Third space, tctLAkduwAxs, laden

with cedar line, in sections.

4. Position of the harpoon-line ten-

der (chikowihlhasi. in Curtis no-
tation).

,'j. Position of the float-inflator.

D. Fourth cargo-space. Here the bail-

ing is attended to.

E. Fifth cargo space, liitA'ksistAxs

(=insidc) laden with water-boxes
and provisions.

6. Position of the watcher.

7. Position of

F. Sixth cargo space, tL'i'tca

(=stern).
S. Position of the steersman.

1920]

Makali Indians
3

Fig. 15. — Diagram showing the cutting-up of the wliale.

Blow-hole.

Eye, kali'i.

Hump, or saddle, _vub — 'Atsk (=taboo jaiece).

Flukes, tLi'i'ctcid (=feet).

Strip extending around the carcass, xAtsA'qAbitL.

Creases, tsabA'kAk (:=strips).

Flipper, lulA'iJi (=hand).

Tongue, lA'kaivi'k.

50 Waterman [Vol. 1

BIBLIOGRAPHY

The following list includes the titles
referred to in the preceding pages.
Boas, Franz

1909. The Kwakiutl of Vancouver Island. American Museum of Natural
History, Memoirs, Vol. 8, part 2. Reprinted from Publications
of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Vol. 5, part 2.
1916. Tsimshian mythology. /» Smithsonian, Institution Thirty-first Annual
Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, pp. 29-1037.
CuRTi.Sj Edward S.

1911-16. The North American Indian: being a series of volumes picturing and
describing the Indians of the United States and Alaska. In twenty
volumes. [Eleven volumes of the series have so far been published.]
Vol. 8. Nez Perce, Walla Walla, Umatilla, Cayuse, Chinookan

Tribes. 1911.
Vol. 9. Salishan tribes of the Coast; Chemakum, Quilliute, Willapa.

1913.
Vol. 10. The Kwakiutl. 1915.
Vol. 11. Nootka, Haida. 1916.
Lewis, Albert Buell

1906. Tribes of the Columbia Valley and the coast of Oregon and Washington.

Memoirs of the American Anthropological Association, Vol. 1, part
2, pp. 151-209.
Meany, Edmond S.

1907. Vancouver's discovery of Puget Sound. Macmillan.

Report of the Committee of the American Anthropological Association on
THE Phonetic Transcription of Indian Languages.

Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, Vol. 66, number 6 (Publication
24.15). Washington, D. C, 1916.
NiBLACK, Albert P.

1 890. The coast Indians of Southern Alaska and Northern British Columbia
7re Smithsonian Institution, U. S. National Museum, Annual
Report for 1888, pp. 225-386.
Swan, James G.

1870. The Indians of Cape Flattery at the entrance to the Strait of Fuca,
Washington Territory. In Smithsonian Institution, Contributions
to Knowledge, number 220.
Vancouver, Captain George

1798. A voyage "of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean. . . performed in
the years 1790, 1791, 1792, 1793, 1794, and 179.5. 3 vols., London.
Wilson, Thomas

1901. Arrow-wounds. In American Anthropologist, n; s. Vol. 3, pp. 513-531.

ILLUSTRATIONS

E.rplanation of Plate 1.

a. .Shapiiiij; tiie hull of the canoe. The typical adze used in such work is seen in the
carpenter's hand. A stone maul is close at hand on the bow of the boat. The
canoe, cut away as it is at bow and stern, is a very heavy-looking hulk until the
additional bow-and-stern-pieces are in jilace.

b. Fitting the bow-pieee on the hull. The bow-piece in a partly-finished state, is
being hewn to fit a scarf previously cut in the hull.

[52]

Univ. of ^^'asll. Piibl. Pol. lS; Soc. .St

\V;itfnr.;\ii 1 VcA. I. Pl;u;- 1

ropiirinlil. Pliotdgliiplis liy .\s;il:cl C'tirtls

MAKING A '■CHINOOK" CANOR.

[5:s]

Ej'plaiKiiion of Plate 2.

a. The canoe is beached stern-foremost, as is the invariable rule. The scarf which
holds the stern-piece on the boat is visible, patched in one place with a piece of
tin. The "gunwale strips" can also be plainly seen. One thwart has been broken
down, and the "mast-holders" have been replaced by a sawn plank, with an
auger-hole in it. Inflated buoys may be seen, and the old whaler is holding a
fine harpoon-shaft.

6. This photograph shows a canoe with the old fashioned square rigging, the var-
ious halyards being plainly visible. The sail, however, is of canvas instead of
matting.

L.'i4l

Univ. of Wash. Publ. Pol. & Soc. .Sci

[Waterman] \'ol. I. Plati

LIGHT-HOUSE .JOE" WITH HIS HARPOON AND BUOYS.
A CANOE UNDER SAIL.

[;5.5]

E.rpliiiiatinii of I'lafe o.

View of Cape Flattery lociking iiortli. The isolated crag in the sea has a recess
near its summit. This crevice is about 10 feet from the top, and the size of the
crag may be further cstiniati d by comparing it with the growth of timber on the
nearby cliff. A spar lay in this recess for a great many years (See page 30
above). Flattery Light may be seen in the distance.
L'ght may be seen in the distance.

This photograph shows tlie same crag as the ])revious one, but the view is taken
toward the soutli. In the cliff to the left are the sea-caves which were the scene
of the sealing exploit mentioned on page 3fi.

v-n

Univ. of Wash. Publ. Pnl. & Soc. Sci

[W.-itfrman] Veil. I. Plate 3

<nlt,iiiflhl. r]lcit..sraiilis h.v Asilhi-l CiM-

ALONG THE MAKAH COAST

[57]

Ea'phinotioiix of Plate I/.

a. The wlialc in tliis pliotograph has "drowned" and has sunk out of sight. His
position is marked by the group of floats in the background.

b. Here the whale has been towed to the beach at Neah Bay. At low tide the people
wMl be able to gather around the stranded carcass, to remove the blubber.

[58]

Univ. of Wash. Publ. INil. & .S„f. Sci.

[Wattrin.in] \'ol. 1. Plate t

Cniiiirinhl. I'lint..2iiiplis liy .\s!iliel C'urfls

THE HARPOONED WHALE

[59]

Explancilioii of Plate 5.

a. Basket in which harpoon-heads arc carried.

6. All old iNIakah is here seen peeling the skin from a wliale. As remarked in the
text, and as may be seen here, this skin is very thin, and quite the opposite from
the hide one ■would look for on such a tremendous carcass. The harpoon-heads
and the buoj^s attached to them have not vet been cut out of the tissue into which
tliey were driven in killing the animal.

[60]

Ur.iv. of Wa~,Ii. I'lilil. Pol. & Sof. Sci.

[Watfi-man] \'ol. 1. Pl:it<- 5

Riuioving the skin from a whale-carcass; basket for harpoon heads.

[fit]

Explanation of Plalc 6.

a. 'Flu- lilubbcr is hc-rt' being reniovtd from the strandid whale. Slabs aic eiit with
tlu "ciiiscl" or "butu"k;," and strijjped off by judling on a line, attached to n
slasii at tiie top of the slab.

b. Three famous whalers, Antone Wispu, on the reader's left; David Fischer, or
Q'e'/t'Ap; and Charley White, called TLixwit'u, or "Paddler." Charley
\^'hite is carrying a "cut " of blubber bv a hand-hold.

[62]

Univ. of Wash. Publ. Pol. & Hoc. Sci.

[W.-ittrinan] \'ol. I. Fl.-itt- 6

l-'./nm:,!,! I'll

CUTTING UP THE WHALE

ii[ihs hy A.silliil Curtis

[63]

E.rplanalion of Plate 7.

T.'ir bones of the whale arc largely stripped bare of the blubber, several cuts of
which are visible in the foreground.

Tlie tlcsh of the animal may here be seen, in the middle i)art of the carca^is. the
blubber having been stripped ofi'. In the foreground lies a float, and at the
right, one of the great flukes of the tail.

[6t]

R D 1 4. 8 ^^

Univ. of Wa,sli. I'libl. I'ol. \- Soc. Sci.

[W,-ittnn;m) \"<il. 1. i'laU

Ciilinriflhl. IMii.logriililis l.y Asiili.-I (.■uvtis

THK LAST OF THF. WHALE

[65]

E,iplaiwtion of Plate S.

a. Sheath for the protection of the harpoon-head (see page 32). The sheath
consists of a folded strip of cedar-bark. The two ends of this strip are split into
narrow fibres, and these fibres are worked over with separate fibres of bark in
plain twining. University of Washington, State Museum. Catalogue number 105.
Length from point of barb to point of blade, 6% inches, 17.5 cm.

h. The complete liarpoon-head. The sinew lanyard, the bone barb, the blade (in
this specimen, a piece of saw-steel) and the final coating of spruce gum, are all
plainly shown. University of Washington, State Museum, Catalog number

105. ;■,'

c. Sketcli showing tlie details of the above lasliing, as far as they are visible in the
completed specimen.

d. Enlarged view of a wjialing head photographed without the blade, and the cov-
ering of resin; showing the ingenious manner in. which the strands of the sinew
lanyard are wrapped and served around the bone framework. University of
Washington. Catalog number 85.

[(56]

Univ. r.f U'.isl!. I'uhl. Pol. iS; .Soc. Sei.

[Wattrnian] X'ol. 1. Pl:ilf 8

IMlnlnsiiipl.^ I.\ l.illkU'ltlT Sllllli.

HEAD FOR TIIK WlIAl.IXC HARPOON

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ST. AUGUSTINE
FLA.

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