THE CHEMAWA AMERICAN
3
All these songs and cerem onies were carried on in th e In d ian tongue.
In d ian s know not how to express them selves eith er in joy or sorrow , in
logic or lau g h ter in any b u t the native tongue. T hey have learned q u ick
ly and th o ro u g h ly our table m anners; they have come to respect our laws;
they follow our advice and precept in farm ing, in m arriage, in fact, in
almost ev ery th in g th a t is elevating and refining, b u t th eir spiritual in
spirations, the deeper em otions, th eir higher th o u g h t finds expression in
th e old forms of native dialects.
“ Do not poke fun at our w a y s,” said the totem pole artist to me as I
stood w ith uncovered head w atching th e after d in n er song. “ Y ou see
th eir faces are sm iling, but it is because th ey are grateful, glad of
th e ir blessings. W e are grow ing to do th in g s in your way as fast as
we can. W e know th a t it is best. W e accept yo u r laws, your custom s.
W e wish to be citizens. But we m ust have a little tim e .”
T his dem onstration by In d ian s was to celebrate no event of salvation
to them , but a treaty of peace th a t perhaps saved the early settlers of
the P uget sound country from slau g h ter. T h e treaty of peace signed
by the great chiefs of these tribes, whose descendants danced and sang
and played th eir gam es on the green sw ard of w hat was in the lifetim e
of m any of them th eir undisputed dom ain, was for th e protection, not
for them selves, b u t the w hite settlers. T h e beneficiaries of th a t treaty
have forgotten even the day of its m aking, w hile by those who the com*
pact gave th e protection of overpow ering num bers to a few rem em ber
it and m ake of it a day of general rejoicing.
By th is treaty the In d ian s gave up a kingdom and were allowed to
keep som ething like 1,200 acres, the land they enjoy today. But yes
terday they sang, and in th eir way sent up paeans of praise and g ra ti
tude to the great G iver of all Good for H is blessings. T hey welcomed
the palefaces to their feast and treated them with unw onted consider
ation.
D uring the afternoon the leaders m ade addresses. John G asper
(C hief Y aw u h u d ) gave a potlatch and rejoiced greatly in giving his
friends gifts, ch an tin g the w hile th e song of frien d sh ip . T h en the men
put on th eir cheap finery and danced and paraded like a lot of children,
playing at being w arriors.
As M aeterlinck says of the bees on the day they sw arm , there was
not a harsh th o u g h t discoverable in the en tire com pany. W hatever of
hardness or enm ity they may harbor in th e ir daily life, at th is yearly
celebration the aboriginess are inspired by but one spirit, com ponent
parts of w hich are joy and gentleness.
Some tim e n ex t sum m er, w hen the m arvelous pole their totem a rtist
is carving is finished, there will be an o th er celebration at w hich it will
be raised. T h en there will be canoe races and aquatic sports of all
kinds and the pupils of th e T u lalip In d ian school may repeat their p er
form ance of H iaw atha w hich they gave th ree years ago.
M