Life at Puget Sound, with sketches of travel in Washington Territory, British Columbia, Oregon and California, 1865-1881

Front matter

I

-Poget Sound

WITH

Chapter I

Page At Sea. — Mariguana Island. — Sea-Birds. — Shipwreck.

— Life on Roncador Reef. — The Rescue. — Isthmus of Panama. — Voyage to San Francisco. — The New- Baby 1

Chapter II

Port Angeles. — Indian "Hunter " and his Wife. — Sailor's Funeral. — Incantation. — Indian Graves. — Chief Yeomans. — Mill-Settlements. — Port Gamble Trail. — Canoe Travel. — The Memaloost. — Tommy and his Mother. — Olympic Range. — Ediz Hook. — Mrs. S. and her Children. — Grand Indian Wedding.

— Crows and Indians 18

Chapter III

Indian Chief Seattle. — Frogs and Indians. — Spring Flowers and Birds. — The Red Tamdhnous. — The Little Pend d'Oreille.— Indian Legend. — From Seattle to Fort Colville. — Crossing the Columbia River Bar. — The River and its Surroundings. — Its Former Magnitude.— The Grande Coulee. — Early Explorers, Heceta, Meares, Vancouver, Grey. — Curious Burial-Place. — Chinese Miners. — Umatilla. — Walla Walla. — Sage - Brush and Bunch -Grass. —

v

VI CONTENTS.

Page Flowers in the Desert. — " Stick " Indians. — Klickatats. — Spokane Indian. — Snakes. — Dead Chiefs..

— A Kamas Field. — Basaltic Eocks .... 38

Chapter IV

Two Hundred Miles on the Upper Columbia. — Steamer " Forty -nine." — Navigation in a Canon — Pend d'Oreille River and Lake. — Rock-Paintings. — Tributaries of the Upper Columbia. — Arrow Lakes. — Kettle Falls. — Salmon-Catching. — Salmon-Dance.

— Goose-Dance 63

Chapter V

Old Fort Colville. — Angus McDonald and his Indian Family. — Canadian Yoyageurs. — Father Joseph. — Hardships of the Early Missionaries. — The Cceurs d'Alene and their Superstitions. — The Catholic Ladder. — Sisters of Notre Dame. — Skill of the Missionaries in instructing the Indians. — Father de Smet and the Blackfeet. — A Native Dance. — Spokanes. — Exclusiveness of the Cceurs d'Alene. — Battle of Four Lakes. — The Yakima Chief and the Road-Makers 75

Chapter VI

Colville to Seattle. — " Red." — " Ferrins." — " Broke Miners." — A Rare Fellow-Traveller. — The Bell- Mare. — Pelouse Fall. — Red-fox Road. — Early Californians. — Frying-pan Incense. — Dragon-Flies. — Death of the Chief Seattle 93

Chapter VII

Port Angeles Village and the Indian Ranch. — A "Ship's Klootchman." — Indian Muck- a -Muck. — Disposition of an Old Indian Woman. — A Windy

CONTENTS. Vll

Page Trip to Victoria. — The Black Tamdhnous. — McDonald's in the Wilderness. — The Wild Cowlitz. — Up the River during a Flood. — Indian Boatmen. — Birch-bark and Cedar Canoes 109

Chapter VIII

Voyage to San Francisco. — Fog-hound. — Port Angeles.

— Passing Cape Flattery in a Storm. — Off Shore. — The "Brontes." — The Captain and his Men. — A Fair Wind. — San Francisco Bar. — The City at Night. —Voyage to Astoria. — Crescent City. — Ironhound Coast. — Mount St. Helen's. — Mount Hood.

— Cowlitz Valley and its Floods. — Monticello . . 124

Chapter IX

Victoria. — Its Mountain Views, Rocks, and Flowers. — Vancouver's Admiration of the Island. — San Juan Islands. — Sir James Douglas. — Indian Wives. — Northern Indians. — Indian Workmanship. — The Thunder-bird. — Indian Offerings to the Spirit of a Child. — Pioneers. — Crows and Sea-Birds . . . 137

Chapter X

Puget Sound and Adjacent Waters. — Its Early Explorers. — Towns, Harbors, and Channels. — Vancouver's Nomenclature. — Juan de Fuca. — Mount Baker. — Chinese " Wing." —Ancient Indian Women. — Pink Flowering Currant and Humming-Birds. — "Ah Sing." 151

CHAPTER XL

Rocky-mountain Region. — Railroad from Columbia River to Puget Sound. — Mountain Changes. — Mixture of Nationalities. — Journey to Coos Bay, Oregon. — Mountain Canon. — A Branch of the Coquille.

Vlll CONTENTS.

Page

— Empire City. — Myrtle Grove. — Yaquina —Genial Dwellers in the Woods. — Our Unknown Neighbor. — "Whales. — Pet Seal and Eagle. — A Mourning Mother. — Visit from Yeomans 165

Chapter XII

Puget Sound to San Francisco. — A Model Vessel. — The Captain's Relation to his Men. —Rough Water.

— Beauty of the Sea. — Golden-gate Entrance. — San Francisco Streets. — Santa Barbara. — Its Invalids.— Our Spanish Neighbors. — The Mountains and the Bay. — Kelp. — Old Mission. — A Simoom. — The Channel Islands. — A New Type of Chinamen.

— An Old Spanish House 182

Chapter XIII

Our Aerie.— The Bay and the Hills. — The Little Gnome. — Earthquake. — Temporary Residents. — The Trade-Wind. — Seal-Rocks. — Farallon Islands.

— Exhilarating Air. — Approach of Summer. — Centennial Procession. — Suicides. — Mission Dolores. — Father Pedro Font and his Expedition. — The Mission Indians. — Chinese Feast of the Dead. — Curious Weather 199

Chapter XIV

Quong. — His Prote'gt. — His Peace-Offering. — The Chinese and their Grandmothers. — Ancient Ideas. — Irish, French, and Spanish Chinamen. — Chinese Ingenuity. — Hostility against the Chinese. — Their Proclamations. — Discriminations against them. — Their Evasion of the Law. — Their Perseverance against all Obstacles. — Their Reverence for their Ancestors, and Fear of the Dead. — Their Medical Knowledge. — Their Belief in the Future. — Their Curious Festivals. — Indian Names for the Months.

CONTENTS. IX

Page

— Resemblance between the Indians and Chinese.

— Their Superstitions 220

Chapter XV

Chun Fa's Funeral. — Alameda. — Gophers and Lizards.

— Poison Oak. — Sturdy Trees. — Baby Lizards. — Old Alameda. — Emperor Norton. — California Gen- • erosity. — The Dead Newsboy. — Anniversary of the Goddess Kum Fa. — Chinese Regard for the Moon and Flowers. — A Shin Worshipper . . . 242

LIFE AT PUGET SOUND.

At Sea. — Mariguana Island. — Sea-Birds. — Shipwreck. — Life on Roneador Reef. —The Rescue. — Isthmus of Panama. — Voyage to San Francisco. — The New Baby.

Atlantic Ocean, May 26, 1865.

IT is a great experience to feel the loneliness of the sea, — to see the whole circle of the heavens, and nothing under it but the rising and falling water, from morning till night, dayafter day.

The first night we were out the porpoises came up at twilight, and sported round the vessel. I saw some sea-birds that seemed to be playing, — running and sliding on the green, glassy waves. In the wake of the vessel were most beautiful changing colors. Little Nelly S. sat with us to watch the phosphorescence. She said, " The stars in the sea call to me, with little fine voices, 'Nelly, Nelly, are you alive?' "

2 MARI GUANA ISLAND.

We have had our first sight of land, — Mariguana, a coral island, one of the Bahamas. Every one stood in silence to see it, it was so beautiful. The spray dashed so high, that, as it fell, we at first took it for streams and cascades. It was just at sunrise ; and we cast longing looks at the soft green hills, bathed in light. Now it is gone, and we have only the wide ocean again. But a new color has appeared in the water, — a purplish pink, which looks very tropical ; and there are blotches of yellow seaweed. Some of it caught in the wheel, and stopped it. The sailors drew it up, and gave it to the children to taste. It was like a little fruit, and they say the birds eat it.

The sea is growing quite rough. I was thinking of being a little afraid, the vessel plunged so ; but Mother Cary's chickens came out, and I thought I might as well consider myself as one of them, and not in any more danger than they are.

Caribbean Sea, May 28, 1865.

We have had a great experience of really rough weather. The spray dashed over the deck, and only the hardiest could keep up. Any one who tried to move was thrown off his feet. Preparations were made for divine service by

SEA-BIRDS. 3

lashing two boxes together in the middle of the deck, and spreading a flag over them. It was conducted by a Scotch Presbyterian minister. As he began his prayer, he received quite an addition to his congregation, in a flock of great birds, that appeared on my side of the vessel. They wheeled round, and settled down softly together. I do not know what they are, but suppose they are gulls of some kind. They have long, narrow wings, brown, with a little black, and snow-white underneath. I am half inclined to envy these wild, soulless creatures, that know no fear.

Eoxcador Reef, June 5, 1865.

On Tuesday morning, May 30, between three and four o'clock, we were awakened by the sharp stroke of the engine-bell, a deep grinding sound, and the sudden stopping of the vessel. We knew that we had not arrived at our port of destination, and felt instinctively that something extraordinary had happened. For a moment all was silence ; then inquiries arose from all sides, as to what was the matter. The engine seemed to be in a great state of commotion ; and the vessel began to writhe with a heavy, laborious movement, as if attempting to free herself from the grasp of some monster. We dressed

4 SHIPWRECK.

hastily, and went into the cabin, where we found a good many of the passengers, and learned that the vessel had struck on a coral-reef. We put on life-preservers, and sat waiting until daylight, expecting every moment the vessel would split. As soon as it was light enough, we went upon deck, and saw the sailors cut away the masts and smoke-stacks, which went over the side of the ship. The water dashed over the deck, so that we were obliged to go below. It seemed there as if we were under the ocean, with the water breaking over our heads. Chandeliers, glasses, and other movable articles were crashing together around us. The cabin was rilled with people, quietly sitting, ready for they knew not what. But among all the seven hundred passengers there was no shrieking nor crying nor groaning, except from the little children, who were disturbed by the noise and discomfort. How well they met the expectation of death ! Faces that I had passed as most ordinary, fascinated me by their quiet, firm mouths, and eyes so beautiful, I knew it must be the soul I saw looking through them. Some parties of Swedish emigrants took out their little prayer-books, and sat clasping each other's hands, and reading them. A missionary bound for Micronesia handed out his tracts in all directions, but no

SHIPWRECK. 5

one took much notice of them. Generally, each one seemed to feel that he could meet death alone, and in his own way.

In the afternoon a faint semblance of land was seen off on the horizon, and a boat was sent out to explore. It was gone a long time, and as night approached was anxiously looked for. Just about dark, it appeared in sight. As it drew near, we saw the men in it waving their hats, and heard them shouting, by which we knew they had succeeded in finding land. The men on the vessel gave a hearty response, but the women could not keep back their tears.

That night the women and children were lowered with ropes, over the side of the vessel, into boats, and taken to a raft near by, hastily constructed on the rocks at the surface of the water, from loose spars, stateroom-doors, and such other available material as could be secured from the vessel. All night long we lay there, watching the dim outline of the ship, which still had the men on board, as she rose and fell with each wave, — the engine-bell tolling with every shock. The lights that hung from the side of the vessel increased the wild, funereal appearance of every thing about us. They continually advanced and receded, and seemed to motion us to follow them. There was a

6 LANDING ON RONCADOR REEF.

strange fascination about them, which I could not resist; and I watched them through the whole night.

At daylight the next morning the ship's boats began to take us over to the island discovered the day before, which was slightly elevated above the surface of the water, and about four miles distant from the wreck. As we approached the shore, some new birds, unlike any I had seen before, — indolent-looking, quiet, and amiable, — flew out, and hovered over the boat, peering down at us, as if inquiring what strange creatures were about to invade their home. Probably they had never seen any human beings before. The sailors said they were " boobies ; " and they certainly appeared very unsophisticated, aiid quite devoid 'of the wit and sprightliness of most birds.

Only a few persons could be landed at a time, and I wandered about at first almost alone. It was two days before all the passengers were transferred. Every thing was so new and strange, that I felt as if I had been carried off to another planet; and it certainly was a great experience, to walk over a portion of the globe just as it was made, and wholly unaltered by man.

I thought of an account of a wreck on this

LIFE ON RON CAD OR REEF. 7

same water I had once read, in which the Caribbean was spoken of as the most beautiful though most treacherous of seas, and the intensity of color was mentioned. Such rose-color I never saw before as in the shells and mosses we find here, nor such lovely pale and green tints as the water all about us shows.

We have been here on this bare reef six days, with the ' breakers all around us, and do not know whether we shall get off or not. We amuse ourselves every morning with looking at the pert little birds, as queer as the boobies, though quite different from them, that sit and nod to each other incessantly, and give each other little hits with their bills, as if these were their morning salutations, — a rough way of asking after each other's health.

San Francisco, July 2, 1865.

We are safely here at last, after forty-two clays' passage, — longer than the children of Israel were in the wilderness. When we return it will be by a wagon-train, if the Pacific Railroad is not done.

When we landed on Roncador Reef, we had no data for conjecturing where we were, except that we remembered passing the island of Jamaica at twilight on the evening preceding

8 LIFE ON RON CAD OR REEF.

the wreck. We were afterwards informed that the vessel was seized by a strong current, and borne far away from her proper course. How gay we were that night, with our music and dancing, exhilarated all the more by the swiftness of the white, rushing water that drove us on to our fate !

The heat on the island was so intense, that our greatest necessity was for some shelter from the sun. The only materials which the place furnished us were rocks of coral, with which we built up walls, over which were spread pieces of sail from the vessel. We lived in these lodges, in little companies. We sat together in ours in the daytime, and could not leave our shelter for a moment without feeling as if we were sunstruck. Every night we abandoned it, and slept out on the rocks; but the frequent little showers proved so uncomfortable that we were driven to great extremity to devise some covering. E.'s ingenuity proved equal to the emergency. He secured an opportunity to visit the vessel (which held together for some days) in one of the boats which were continually plying between her and the island, bringing over all available stores. All the mattresses and other bedding that could be secured had been distributed, mostly to the mothers and children.

LIFE ON RON CAD OR REEF. 9

His penetrating eye detected the materials for a coverlet in the strips of painted canvas nailed to the deck. He managed without tools to tear off some pieces, and, by untwisting some tarred rope, to fasten them together; thus providing a quilt, which, if not comfortable, was at least waterproof, and served to draw over us when a shower came on. It was no protection, however, against the crabs, large and small, that used to crawl under it, and eat pieces out of our clothes, and even our boots, while we were asleep. These crabs were of the hermit order. Each one, from the minutest to the largest, had taken possession of the einpty shell of some other creature, exactly large enough for him, and walked about with it on his back, and drew himself snugly into it when molested. Every little crevice in the rocks had a white or speckled egg in it when we landed, and from these we made a few good meals. The one day the women spent on the island alone with the birds passed in the most friendly manner ; but after the men and boys came, the larger ones abandoned us.

We felt sorry not to bring away some of the beautiful shells which were plentiful there, and more gorgeous than any thing I ever saw before. While the living creature is in them, they are

10 LIFE ON RONCADOR REEF.

much brighter than after it is dead ; and in the length of time it takes to bring them from tropical countries, they fade almost like flowers. Mrs. S. was so enterprising, and, I must say, so unsesthetic, as to try to concoct a meal from the occupants of some of the large conch-shells taken from the beach, cooking it for a considerable length of time in a large brass kettle, the only available utensil. Those who partook of it in our little group had cause to repent of their rashness ; but we did not like to charge the injury to the lovely creatures which were sacrificed for this feast, preferring to " blame it on " to the brass kettle, as the California children would express it. The more cautious ones contented themselves with their two sea-biscuits and fragment of beef or pork per day, which were the regular rations served to each from the stores saved from the ship. Some surface water, found among the rocks, was carefully guarded, and sparingly dealt out.

After we had been four or five days on the island, two of the ship's boats were sent out to seek assistance, manned by volunteer crews ; one headed for Aspinwall, which was thought to be about two hundred and fifty miles distant, and the other to search for what was supposed to be the nearest land.

THE RESCUE. 11

Very early on the morning of the tenth day we heard the cry of " A sail ! " We started up from our rocky beds, and stood, without daring to speak. There was a little upright shadow, about as large as a finger, against the sky. Every eye was turned to it, but no one yet dared to confirm it; and, even if it were a sail, those on board the vessel might not see our island, it was so low, or our flag of distress, as we had nothing on which to raise it very high. We stood for several minutes, without daring to look at each other with the consciousness that we were saved. We presently saw that there were two little schooners beating up against the wind, directly towards us, and that they carried the red English flag. They had been catching turtles on the Mosquito Coast. As soon as our boat reached them, they unloaded their turtles (which occupied them a day), with the exception of three large ones which they reserved for us, and then started at once.

These small vessels were unequal to carrying away half the people on the island, and they had no arrangements for the comfort of passengers. A considerable number decided to embark on them, and commenced doing so; while the larger part of the company remained on the spot, to take their chance of escape in some

12 TEE RESCUE.

other way, since communication with the world was now established.

The next day we were all rejoiced by the appearance of two United-States gunboats from Aspinwall, which point was reached by our other boat, after a rough experience ; the waves having capsized her during the passage, and swallowed up the provisions and nautical instruments.

It was then decided that all the company should be taken to Aspinwall by the United- States vessels, and their boats and ours were at once put to service in transferring the people from the island ; who, as they gathered up such fragments of their property as had been rescued from the wreck, and tied it up in bedquilts or blankets, shouldered their bundles, and moved slowly down to the point of departure, — their garments weather-stained and crab-eaten, some of them without shoes or hats, and all with much-bronzed faces, — presented a picturesque and beggarly appearance, in striking contrast to their aspect before the wreck.

We were treated with the greatest kindness by every one connected with the gunboats. They took us in their arms, and carried us into the boats, and stood all night beside us, offering ice-water and wine. They greatly bewailed our

THE RESCUE. 13

misfortunes, and told us, that, when they heard of our condition, they put on every pound of steam the vessels would bear, in order to reach us as speedily as possible, fearing that some greater calamity might befall us, — that our supply of water might entirely fail, or that the trade-wind might change, and a storm bring the sea over the island. They told us, too, that we were very far off the track of vessels; and, if our boats had failed to bring succor, in all probability no one would ever have come there in search of us.

The two schooners decided to remain a while, and wreck the vessel. As we steamed away from the reef, we passed her huge skeleton upon the rocks, the bell still hanging to the iron part of the frame.

On the second clay we reached Aspinwall, and disembarked. As we sat on the wharf, in little groups, on pieces of lumber or on our bundles, waiting for arrangements to be made for our transportation across the Isthmus, a black man, employed there, fixed his eye upon our darkskinned Julia, and, approaching, asked if she "got free in the Linkum war." I told him that she did, and asked him where he came from. He said he was from Jamaica; and I said, " I suppose you have been free a long

14 ISTHMUS OF PANAMA.

time ? " to which he replied, with great energy, "Before I was born, I was free," and repeated it again. and again, — "before I was born."

We found that Julia, to whom all things were new in the land of freedom, thought that the island where we spent so many days was a regular stopping-place on the way to California, and that the wreck was a legitimate mode of stopping ; as one day she inquired if that was the way they always went to San Francisco, and said, if she had known travelling was so hard, she would not have started. This accounted for her equanimity, which surprised me, after the vessel struck the reef, as she sat quietly eating her cakes, while every thing was going to destruction around us, and the sea broke above our heads.

In crossing the Isthmus of Panama, we were delighted with the neat appearance of the natives, whom we saw along the roadside, or sitting in their little huts near by, which were made of the trunks of the tall palm-trees, in columns, open at the side, and thatched with leaves. These people were clad in clean white garments, the women with muslins and laces drooping from their bare shoulders, and with bright flowers in their hair.

On reaching Panama, the women there greeted

VOYAGE TO SAN FRANCISCO. 15

us with great kindness and sympathy. One of them threw her arms around one of the first women of our party that she saw,' and exclaimed, " Oh, we have thought so much about you ! we were afraid you would die for want of water." It seemed strange that they should have cared so much, when a little while before they never knew of our existence. I felt as if I had hardly had a chance before in my life to know what mere humanity meant, apart from individual interest, and how strong a feeling it is. We realized still more the kindness of these " dear, dark-eyed sisters," when we opened the trunk of clothing which they sent on board the " America," the steamer that took us to San Francisco.

The voyage up the Pacific coast was long and wearisome. For some days we felt seriously the ill effects of the island life and the tropic heat, and could only endure ; until, one morning, we came up on deck, and there were the beautiful serrated hills of Old California. We had rounded Cape St. Lucas, and had a strong, exhilarating breeze from the coast, and began to be ourselves again.

The monotony of our sea-life was broken by one event of special interest, — the addition of another human being to our large number. I

16 THE NEW BABY.

must mention first, — for it seems as if they brought her, — that all one day we sailed in a cloud of beautiful gray-and-white gulls, flying incessantly over and around us, with their pretty orange bills and fringed wings and white fantails. They were very gentle and dove-like. They staid with us only that day. The last thing that I saw at night, far into the dark, was one flying after us ; and, the next morning, we heard of the birth of the baby. She was christened in the cabin, the day after, by the Micronesian missionarjr, in the presence of a large company. A conch-shell from the reef served as the christening-basin. The American flag was festooned overhead ; and, as far as possible, the cabin was put into festive array. She was named "Roncadora America," from the reef, and the vessel on which she was born. The captain gave her some little garments he was carrying home to his own unborn baby, and the gold ties for her sleeves. When her name was pronounced, the ship's gun was fired ; then the captain addressed the father, who held her, and presented him with a purse of fifty dollars from the passengers, ending in triumph with —

"And now, my friends, see Roncadora, With freedom's banner floating o'er her. !

THE NEW BABY. 17

The father then uncovered her; she having made herself quite apparent before by wrestling with her little fists under the counterpane, and uttering a variety of wild and incomprehensible sounds. She proved a handsome baby, large and red, with a profusion of soft, dark hair.

II

Port Angeles. — Indian " Hunter " and his "Wife. — Sailor's Funeral. — Incantation. — Indian Graves. — Chief Yeomans. — Mill Settlements. — Port Gamble Trail. — Canoe Travel. — The Memaloost. — Tommy and his Mother. Olympic Eange. — Ediz Hook. — Mrs. S. and her Children. — Grand Indian Wedding. — Crows and Indians.

Port Angeles, "Washington Territory, July 20, 1865.

WE reached here day before yesterday, very early in the morning. We were called to the forward deck ; and before us was a dark sea-wall of mountains, with misty ravines and silver peaks, — the Olympic Range, a fit home for the gods.

A fine blue veil hung over the water, between us and the shore ; and, the air being too heavy for the smoke of the Indian village to rise, it lay in great curved lines, like dim, rainbow-colored serpents, over sea and land.

I thought it was the loveliest place I had ever seen. The old Spanish explorers must have thought so too, as they named it "Port of the Angels."

PORT ANGELES. 19

We found that the path to our house was an Indian trail, winding about a mile up the bluff from the beach; the trees shutting overhead, and all about us a drooping white spirea, a most bridal-looking flower. Here and there, on some precipitous bank, was the red Indianflame. Every once in a while, we came to a little opening looking down upon the sea ; and the sound of it was always in our ears. At last we reached a partially cleared space, and there stood the house ; behind it a mountain range, with snow filling all the ravines, and, below, the fulness and prime of summer. We are nearly at the foot of the hills, which send us down their snow-winds night and morning, and their ice-cold water. Between us and them are the fir-trees, two hundred and fifty and three hundred feet high ; and all around, in the burnt land, a wilderness of bloom, — the purple fireweed, that grows taller than our heads, and in the richest luxuriance, of the same color as the Alpine rose, — a beautiful foreground for snowy hills.

The house is not ready for us. We are obliged at present, for want of a chimney, to stop with our nearest neighbor. But we pay it frequent visits. Yesterday, as we sat there, we received a call from two Indians, in extreme

20 INDIAN "HUNTER" AND HIS WIFE.

undress. They walked in with perfect freedom, and sat down on the floor. We shall endeavor to procure from Victoria a dictionary of the Haidah, Chinook, and other Indian languages, by the aid of which we shall be able to receive such visitors in a more satisfactory manner. At present, we can only smile very much at them. Fortunately, on this occasion, our carpenter was present, who told us that the man was called " Hunter," which served as an introduction. Hunter took from the woman a white bag, in which was a young wild bird, and put it into my hands. The carpenter said that this Indian had done some work for him, bringing up lumber from the beach, etc., and had come for his pay; that he would not take a white man's word for a moment, but if, in making an agreement with him, a white man gave him a little bit of paper with any tiling written on it, he was perfectly satisfied, and said, " You my tilikum [relation] — I wait."