Читать книгу In the Wake of the War Canoe - W. H. Collison - Страница 19

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"Cross against corslet; Love against hatred,

Peace cry for war cry; Patience is powerful:

He that o'ercometh hath power o'er the nation." Longfellow ("The Nun of Nidaros").

In one of my early visits up the Nass River, after a service held in one of the large lodges at Gitwinikshilk, I took a walk around the camp. The medicine men were carrying on their dark séances in a lodge near, from which men with painted faces and bands of cedar bark bound round their heads were passing in and out. They were initiating some young braves into the mysteries of their craft.

As I turned away from the scene, I was attracted by the sight of a broken-down grave fence almost concealed with the heavy undergrowth. As such a mode of burial was not customary amongst the heathen Indians, I forced my way through the bushes, and found the lonely grave had been marked with a wooden slab cut in the form of a tombstone. It was overgrown with moss and fungi. This I scraped off, and found inscribed underneath the name of the first convert to Christianity among the Nishkas. This was the tomb of the young man mentioned by Mr. Doolan in his journal, included in a preceding chapter, as the son of a chief who had placed himself under instruction with him, despite much opposition, and who, he hoped, would have been baptized the following spring as the first-fruits of the Nass for Christ. He was so baptized, and proved faithful. But he caught cold, returning to his own village, on the ice, in the early spring, and this resulted in fever. During his illness the medicine men persisted in performing their incantations over him, but he protested against their action, and continued faithful unto death. He had been baptized by the Christian name of "Samuel," which was joined to his own Nishka name of "Takomash." This was the name I was enabled to decipher on the tomb: "Samuel Takomash, the first convert to Christianity from the tribes of the Nass River."

The remainder of the inscription was illegible. As I stood there by that tomb, I realised that the same blessed power and influence which had won Takomash for Christ and the truth, could also win these benighted Indians whom I saw and heard so engrossed in their heathen practices around me. And, with the Divine help, I inwardly determined to labour to this end.

Takomash's tomb has long since been lost to view, as a fire (which occurred in 1895) swept that village out of existence during my absence on a visit to England. Only a few totem poles escaped to mark the site where the village had stood from the time of the lava eruption. But Takomash was but the first-fruits of an abundant harvest which should yet be reaped and garnered into the fold of Christ. His brother was brought to the Mission station several years afterwards in a dying condition, suffering from typhoid fever. His aged mother accompanied him.

After a hard struggle with the disease, we were rewarded by his complete recovery. He was grateful for the care bestowed upon him, and the lessons he had learned on his sick-bed were not forgotten. Both he and his mother were baptized, and afterwards several other relations. His uncle, a hard-hearted heathen chief, refused to listen to the call of the gospel. At the olachan fishery one day, I succeeded in finding him alone, and got him in close quarters on the bank of the bay. We sat down on a log together, and I put the question to him, "Agwelakah, how much longer are you going to remain in heathenism? Your nephew was the first to become a Christian, and he showed you the way. Why don't you follow it?"

"Oh, I am not a bad man," he replied. "Look at my hands; they are not dyed in blood—as some men's hands are. And I have Takomash's Bible in my box yet; I did not destroy it."

"Ah!" I replied, "that will only condemn you—if you have the light and do not walk in it, but hide it."

He continued to follow the old heathen customs until one day, when away on a hunting expedition, he was seized with a severe illness. Then, with the fear of death before him, he sent a messenger with all speed to inform our missionary, the Rev. J. B. McCullagh, that he was dying. A relief party was despatched to bring him back, and then it was that he surrendered. He recovered, but remained faithful to his trust unto death. The message of his nephew and his Bible was no longer a mere memory, but became to him a bright beacon, guiding him on in the way to the life eternal.

It was not so with another sub-chief of the same tribe. His son had long been a Christian, and at length the father decided to follow his son's example. Just then the sad news reached him that his son had been drowned when bathing in a distant river: he had been seized with cramp, and sank. When the old man heard the sad tidings, he said: "I was long in the darkness, when at length I saw a light. That light was being held out to me by my son. It became brighter and brighter so that it attracted me. I arose and was moving towards it when suddenly it went out, and now I have no light to guide me." I reminded him of the True Light which would never be eclipsed or extinguished. It had illuminated and attracted his son, and would also enlighten him.

One of the first of the Nishka chiefs to embrace Christianity was Kinzadak. He is referred to in the extracts given from the Rev. R. Doolan's journal in a preceding chapter, as a chief who was "doing all in his power to undermine the work." In this brief reference to Kinzadak he was giving a whisky feast to which, with some of his tribe, he was engaged in dragging along those who were unwilling to enter. I first met him in his house up the river, when he entertained my brother missionary and myself. He was then seeking after the light. He had been an adventurer as a young man, and led an expedition as far as the Takou Indians at the head of the inlet of this name in Alaska. Whilst there the Takous, eager to impress their guests with a sense of their wealth and power, bound some fourteen of their slaves and, having procured a young forked tree, placed it in position on the beach and then laid the slaves, who were bound, with their necks on the lower branch. The young men of the tribe then performed the death dance around them, accompanied by the noise of their drums and songs. Then, at a given signal, a number of them sprang on the upper branch, bringing it down by their united weight on the necks of the slaves, whose cries and struggles were drowned by the chant and drums. This was continued till their cries were hushed in death.

Shortly after, when all were engaged in a feast in front of the camp, suddenly one of the slaves who had been placed nearest to the extremity of the branch and had only been rendered insensible for a time, started to his feet and, uttering a wild whoop which awakened the echoes all around, rushed off into the forest. For a few moments all were paralysed with astonishment, as he appeared rather as a spectre than a being of flesh and blood. Then, having recovered from their surprise, the entire band of young men who had acted as the executioners gave utterance to one united whoop and rushed off in pursuit of the fugitive. After a long chase a chorus of howls, resembling that of a pack of wolves, announced his recapture. Soon they emerged from the forest, and marching the unfortunate captive to the place from which he had fled, he was again laid on the branch, on which a number of them jumped and quickly crushed out his life. As slaves were the most valuable property possessed by the Indians, this was done to convince those whom they were entertaining of their wealth.

Kinzadak and his men were indignant at the manner in which they had been received, and on their return down the inlet they ransacked a village belonging to the Takous, carrying off much booty. This became a casus belli between the Takous and the Nishkas for a number of years, in which they avoided meeting one another. But as soon as Christianity triumphed amongst the latter, they issued an invitation to the Takous intimating their desire to restore the property they had carried away. In response to this invitation, the Takous sent their head chief, accompanied by a number of the leading men of the tribe. They arrived on the Nass in a large canoe, and a great amount of property was contributed and made over to them, and a general peace made and confirmed.

The following is a true copy of the letter sent by the Nishka chiefs to the chiefs of the Takou:

"Nass River, British Columbia, Aug. 19th, 1897.

"From the Nishka Chiefs to the Chiefs of the Takou Tribes.

"Our Friends, Taktotem, Gatlani, Yaktahuk, Neishloosh, and Anetlash.

"We, the Chiefs of the Nishka tribes living here on this river, desire to make friendship with you our friends. Many snows and suns have passed since the quarrel which took place between us and you. We are anxious to make it up now and to be friends. We are no longer in the darkness as our fathers were, but the light has come and we desire to make peace. We want to see your faces, and grasp your hands. We want to spread our food before you that we may all eat together. We wish to scatter the swansdown over you, the sign of peace, and to make your hearts glad. We desire to return the property which was taken from you at that time. The eyes of many who were engaged in that quarrel have long been closed. We want you to come next spring time, when the ice has broken up on the rivers and the snow is melting on the mountains. We will welcome you; we are your Friends.

(Signed) "Chief Kagwatlane.

„ Albut Gwaksho.

„ George Kinzadak.

„ Paul Klaitak.

„ A. W. Mountain."

To this overture of peace the Takous responded by sending a deputation headed by Anetlas, a fine-looking and intelligent chief. He and his retinue were well received and honoured at every encampment on the lower river. The swansdown was duly and freely scattered over them in the dance of peace, and they were feasted and fêted, as long as they remained. Anetlas wore a large medal on his breast, presented him by the first Governor of Alaska.

On his departure a letter, of which the following is a copy, was sent by him to his brother chiefs and their people.

"From the Nishka Chiefs and People,

"To their friends, the Chiefs and people of Takou.

"We are glad that Anetlas has come. We welcome him as your Chief and representative. He came to us as the messenger of peace. We have long been anxious to make peace, because we have changed from the old ways. We have put away the spear and the gun and we have scattered the swansdown. We desire to walk in the way of the Great Spirit. That way is the way of peace. The Great Spirit is our Father and your Father. We are all brothers, because we are all his children. And therefore we wish to love all our brethren. And now we open the way to our river to you. We will always welcome you our friends, when you come, and you have opened the way that we may visit you. Anetlas came in time to hear Kinzadak's last words. He came in time to grasp Kinzadak's hand. Kinzadak gave Anetlas his word of peace for you. We all join our words to his. We send you an offering of peace. We have written a list for you of the property we are sending you. Anetlas, your Chief and our brother, accepts our gifts for himself, and for you. They are as the blossoms on the tree of peace. The fruits will follow to us and to you. We invite you our brothers, to gather the fruits of peace with us, and we send you our united greeting.

(Signed) "Albert Gwaksho, Chief.

F. A. Tkakquokaksh, Chief.

Kagwatlane, Chief.

Klaitak, Chief.

Allu-ligoyaws, Chief."

It was true as stated in their letter, Kinzadak just lived to assist in ratifying the treaty of peace. On the eve of Whitsunday, he sent for me and intimated his earnest desire for the administration to him of the Holy Communion. I informed him that there would be an administration of the Sacrament on the following morning, being Whitsunday, and that I should administer it to him also after the service.

"I am tired," he replied, "I desire to arise and go to my Father in heaven; I shall not be here to-morrow. I desire to partake of the Sign now."

Accordingly, I invited a faithful old Christian, a veteran in Christ's Army, to be present, and his own family, and we had a solemn and joyful service. A Nishka hymn was sung. He shook me warmly by the hand and wished me "Good night." The following morning, after a quiet night, just as the sun was gilding all the snow-capped mountain-tops around with his golden beams, the old chief turned over on his side and, breathing a silent prayer, he fell asleep. Thus, on the morn of the birthday of the Church,[5] Kinzadak entered into the rest that remaineth for the people of God.

First, we see him as a heathen chief, in his paint and feathers, urging his people to his whisky feast, and opposing the efforts of the missionary. Next, we see him on the war-path, and then we see him as a peacemaker, sending a message of peace to Takou. And then, as his end on earth drew near, earnestly begging to be permitted to obey the Saviour's great command, "Do this in remembrance of Me." Kinzadak's great carved totem pole still stands at Ankidā, where it was erected by him and his tribe after he succeeded to the chieftainship.

A great potlatch was made on that occasion, to which all the Indian chiefs and people of the other crests were invited. It was in order to draw away the early converts from the vicinity of these liquor feasts and heathen practices, that the headquarters of the Mission was moved to Kincolith, twenty miles further down, and just at the mouth of the Nass. There were other advantages gained by this move. The present station is never frozen in during the winter, being situated on tidal water, whilst in the summer it is free from mosquitoes; whereas all the villages where the Mission was first established are frozen in for at least five months every winter, and in the summer the mosquitoes are in myriads, making life a misery. Shortly after the movement of the Mission to Kincolith, at a great carousal held at Ankidā, the site vacated, a quarrel arose between the Nishkas and the Tsimsheans in which a number on both sides were shot. The Christian Indians did not wholly escape. It was during the spring olachan fishing, and a canoe manned by adherents of the Mission, three men and a boy, had gone down the river, and, during their absence, the quarrel had arisen. A Tsimshean canoe had gone out intent on retaliation, and met this canoe of Nishkas returning to the fishery, all unconscious of what had occurred. They passed them within speaking distance in order to reconnoitre, and, as they passed them, inquired, "Did you see a whisky schooner down the coast?" They replied in the negative and continued on their way.

But just after they had passed them, some thirty or forty yards, the Tsimsheans fired a volley into them, killing two and wounding the steersman. The latter, though wounded, directed the boy, who was his nephew, to hide under his legs in the stern of the canoe.

"As I lay there," said he, when relating the account to me, "I could hear my uncle's blood gurgling out from his wounds. A second volley killed him outright, and splintered the canoe close to me." The murdering party then approached and, taking the canoe in tow, paddled for the shore. Beaching the canoe, they proceeded to pull the bodies out of it, and, dragging them ashore, left them amongst the trees.

"Whilst thus engaged, one of them discovered me," said the lad, "and held me up before the others."

"Hold him up while I shoot him," shouted the leader, as he stood with his gun presented at the bow of the canoe.

The man who held him was endeavouring to do so, when a third intervened.

"Hold on," he cried, "till I ask him a question. What is your uncle's name?" he inquired. The boy replied, giving him the name of his father's brother.

"I thought so," he replied. Then, seizing him, he cried to the others, "You must not shoot him, he belongs to my crest; whoever shoots him must shoot me first." The others were angry, urging that he should be shot, as, if not, he would inform on them. But his defender persisted in his defence. He was conveyed to the Tsimshean camp. The following day it was decided to send the lad up to his friends by a neutral canoe owned by a Tongas Indian who was married to a Tsimshean woman. But the Tsimsheans had secretly instructed this man to do away with the boy on the way up the river. Accordingly, this man embarked with his wife, taking the lad with them. When sufficiently away from the camp, he informed his wife of the engagement he had made to kill the boy, and called upon her to sit clear of him so that he might shoot him. Instead of doing so, she seized the lad, and protecting him with her own body, declared that before she would permit him to injure the lad, he must first shoot her. Seeing his wife so determined, and fearing to persist further, he desisted, and so the lad was safely landed at the Nishka camp. Thus, twice he had narrowly escaped death, but on both occasions a protector had arisen, when least expected. He was spared to grow up, and married a young woman who had been trained in the Mission house. He is an active and leading member of the local branch of the Church Army, and a regular communicant. The bodies of the men thus murdered were recovered by a party from the Mission, and were interred on a rocky bluff just below the Mission station.

When the Tsimsheans at Fort Simpson heard of the quarrel, a party of them at once started on the war-path for the Nass, fully armed for the fray. They boldly touched at the Mission station on their way up, probably to learn, if possible, how the war was proceeding. The Rev. R. Tomlinson, who was then in charge, having first directed his people, the adherents of the Mission, to remain in their houses, walked down to the canoes, and, having ascertained their intention, informed them of the attack on the members of the Mission, and called upon them to surrender their guns, or prepare to bear the penalty. They were so taken by surprise that they permitted their weapons to be seized, and consented to return again to their camp. They probably surmised that the missionary had a party prepared to support his demand, and the news of the death of the three men, which they feared might be charged on them, decided their action.

It was deemed necessary by the Government to send up a vessel of war, H.M.S. Sparrowhawk, with Governor Seymour on board, in order to make peace between the contending tribes and settle the dispute. It was on the return voyage of the Sparrowhawk that Governor Seymour died suddenly on board, his last official act being to ratify and confirm the peace thus made between the warring tribesmen.

In 1877, the Canadian Methodist Missionary Society established a Mission on the Nass near to the village where the Rev. R. A. Doolan had commenced the Church Missionary Society's Mission thirteen years previously. It would have been more in accord with the true spirit of Mission work had they occupied the upper river, where but little had yet been done. Here, there were two large villages, the Giatwinikshilk and the Giatlakdamiksh, both of which were eager to have a Mission established amongst them. A native teacher had been stationed at the upper village, which was the most populous of the two, and frequent visits had been made by our missionaries. In the Mission hospital at Kincolith, the Rev. R. Tomlinson, as a medical missionary, had treated several of this tribe, including an aged chief. Consequently, they always welcomed his visits and mine. Acting on the same principle as had been adopted in the establishment both of Metlakahtla and Kincolith, Mr. Tomlinson first inaugurated the Christian village of Aiyansh, less than two miles below the heathen encampment, and encouraged the first converts who came out of heathenism to establish themselves there. After Mr. Tomlinson's departure in 1878, to open the Mission in the interior, as the work on the river was under my superintendence, I visited the upper villages, and conducted services in the head chief's house at Giatlakdamiksh occasionally, and also at Giatwinikshilk and Aiyansh.

To the little community gathered out of heathenism at the latter place, I gave a Church Missionary Society's banner, of which they were proud, and also a supply of school-books, and material for the native teacher stationed there. On my first visit I preached to them, assembled in the house of the first convert, from St. Luke xii. 32. They had not heard this message previously, and I have not forgotten the joy and satisfaction with which they received the Word. It proved specially appropriate, as they had just been experiencing much petty persecution from their heathen friends because of their separation from them. But deliverance and advancement were at hand.

In 1883, Mr. J. B. and Mrs. McCullagh arrived to take charge of the Upper Nass Mission. Mr. McCullagh established his headquarters at Aiyansh, and at once applied himself to acquire the language. Whilst thus engaged he formed his plans for the prosecution of the work of the Mission, and was soon labouring to evangelize and civilize the heathen tribes around. But he was not long in finding out the difficulties which beset his efforts, for the Upper Nass had always been a stronghold of heathenism. By persevering effort, he succeeded in winning their confidence. His labours have been rewarded with much success, as the model Mission settlement at Aiyansh indicates. Here he has built up a congregation of between two and three hundred Christians, drawn not only from the encampments in the vicinity, but also from the Giat-winlkōl tribe away in the interior.

And now all the Indians on the Upper Nass have surrendered to the call of the Gospel, and the villages which were heathen on his arrival are all now Christian. By his translational work, the Rev. J. B. McCullagh has done much to enlarge and inform the minds of his Indian converts, many of whom can both read and write in their own tongue. But the great ambition of all the tribes is to know the English language; the Chinook jargon, which was formerly their only medium of inter-communication, is falling into disuse, whilst English is being freely used, both orally and by letter. They realise that a knowledge of English will open up to them a boundless field of information, both sacred and secular, and will also tend to unite them yet closer as Christians.