Daring Deeds

by Archer Wallace

  Naturally, there were tribes that hated the Hydas, and among these was the Cape Fox tribe in Alaska. The enmity between the two was strong. After the coming of the Reverend Thomas Crosby to Fort Simpson, peace was established, at least for a while, and he succeeded in persuading the Indians to submit their quarrels to him and to accept his decision. Generally he was successful, although occasionally the war-like feelings got the mastery of the Indians, and bloodshed was the result. One of the big chiefs of the Cape Fox tribe was an old Indian named Kah-shakes. He was a strong character, and in his early manhood had been in many a savage war and had taken a great many scalps. In his old age, although still a heathen, he welcomed the missionary and occasionally attended church services.

  One day during a visit to Fort Simpson he saw a chief of the Hydas tribe against whom he had fought many a bitter battle. Enmity between them was still strong, and as they both had followers at the fort, it was not easy to know what would happen. Then and there he wanted to fight, yet sufficient Christian teaching had penetrated to his heart that for a while he restrained himself. Greatly agitated, he came to Mr. Crosby and said:

  “Han-kow, Han-kow [meaning Chief, Chief], I should like to speak to you, sir. You are the great Chief who has brought peace all along this coast, and I wish you, the great peace Chief, would help me. You, sir, have seen these Hydas come here. There are some in town now and there is a great Han-kow in this village from Queen Charlotte Islands. Nin-jingwash is his name. I always feel, when I see him, that I should like to kill him. I feel angry at him; and so I came to tell you, sir, that I hope you will make peace between us. It has been a long trouble. If you will call him up to your house, I will speak to him and tell him my heart; I can’t speak to him on the street. I want to speak to him in your presence, sir. Call him quickly, Han-kow.”

  Mr. Crosby at once sent for the proud, ambitious Hydas chief, Nin-jing-wash. This man was tall, handsome, rich, and determined to have his own way. He had amassed his wealth by taking a large number of slaves and selling them. He had even sold his wife. All this he did in order to get property and pose at the big feasts as a rich man, which indeed he was.

  Nin-jing-wash accepted the invitation of the missionary to come to his home, and must have been greatly surprised to find waiting there for him, his enemy, Kah-shakes. Mr. Crosby said, “Chief Nin-jing-wash, the reason I called you is that your brother chief from Alaska, Kah-shakes, has something to say to you.”

  Kah-shakes began by saying that he did not want to be angry. He said ever since the great light of God’s truth had come so near to them, he knew it was wrong to hate his brother Indian. He said that for many long years there had been great trouble between his people and the Hydas. Sometimes one tribe had been to blame and sometimes another, but many scalps had been taken and much blood had been shed and great suffering had resulted. He was now willing, however, to be reconciled to the chief and the people of the Hydas tribe.

  Chief Nin-jing-wash was so completely taken aback he did not know how to answer. After a while he said, “I am alone here now; there is no chief with me with whom I can discuss this matter. Let this man go away and tell his people and bring his chiefs. I will go back to my country and bring my chiefs. I shall return in one moon and a half, if the weather is good.” It was a journey of seventy-five miles over a very treacherous sea.

  In one moon and a half the two chiefs, each with about ten of his subordinates, came together at Fort Simpson to hold a council. Before any discussion began, the two leaders made their cross on paper, signifying that they would accept the decision of the missionary after representatives of each tribe had stated their case. Then after the meeting had been solemnly opened with prayer, Chief Nin-jing-wash made the first speech. He told the story of battles of long ago as he had heard them from other members of his tribe when he was a mere boy and from that time till the present there had been constant bloodshed. He did not hesitate to say that he thought the Cape Fox Indians from Alaska had much fight in their hearts and had been bad men.

  Then Kah-shakes was asked to speak. He said, “I have not a bad heart or I should not have come to this God’s servant to make peace. If I had not a good heart, I should have thought over the bad and have gone away and done something bad another time. In our great war, which Chief Nin-jing-wash has spoken about, there were many killed and many taken slaves. It is the way with our law, as the chief knows, that, if the same number is killed, scalped or taken on both sides, peace is proclaimed by a good chief putting white eagle down on the heads of the contending chiefs.”

  The council lasted for two whole days. One after another told of dark, bloody conflicts in which many were butchered and women and children taken and slain—in some cases where the condition of the women was such that they should have had the tenderest care. Often the feeling rose to such a pitch that it seemed we should have a fight right there. Then some one or other of the Christian men would rise in a very dignified, quiet way and, by some kind words, pour oil on the troubled waters. He would say, ‘Now, friends, don’t get angry; you know this is a time of peace and you have come to a great peacemaker.’ Each session closed with song or prayer.

  It was not an easy thing for Thomas Crosby to control the council. At times it seemed as if it would break up in complete disorder and a battle would result there and then. Here are his own words:

  “I did not rest much those two nights; and sometimes when the chiefs told their heartrending stories of the terrible conflicts and how their people were savagely slain, I would rise to say a word to quell their rage or sit and lift my heart to God for help. Much prayer was made among our fellow Christians of the village during those days, and it was a real comfort to see how much they were interested in making peace between these once great nations of proud people. Some of the chiefs talked quite calmly, others told most exciting and awful stories of savage butchery. It seemed to us that the Foxes had been the aggressors and had evinced a most daring, blood-thirsty, warlike spirit in going all the way to the Hyda country to fight with such a formidable people; yet the Hydas were not behind a whit in their cruelty and violence. They took all the slaves they could get and were noted slave-traders. It was clear that they had the best of the fray more than once.

  “After hearing every one speak—and some spoke a good many times—we proposed that they should settle the difficulty by appeal to the two laws. They must use the Christian law of forgiveness, as we thought that no blankets could settle this affair; and, according to the Indian custom, they might pay to the Foxes fifty blankets. Thus we hoped that they would be at peace.

  “Old Nin-jing-wash, on behalf of the Hydas, rose and said, ‘My chiefs and I are willing to do what the good missionary chief says.’

  “Old Kah-shakes replied, ‘Do you think my heart can be bought with a few blankets?’ and as he rose he took off a fine new overcoat, walked across the floor and handed it to the Hyda chief. Then he stepped back into the middle of the room and beckoned to the chief to come to him. He took him by the hand, as if he were going to shake hands with him, embraced him with the other arm, and turned round three times to the place where he started; then the two great chiefs kissed each other. He went through the same ceremony with the eight remaining Hyda chiefs and kissed them all with the exception of one. He shook hands with this man and embraced him, but did not kiss him. We asked him, after it was all over, why he did not kiss the last one. He said there was just a little in his heart that he could not forgive, as that was one of the men who had so savagely and brutally destroyed one of the women of his tribe.”

  At the close of the council all rose, shook hands with each other, and Mr. Crosby prayed that God would bring peace to their hearts and help them to understand that they were the children of one Heavenly Father. All the chiefs then put their signatures to the following paper:

  “It is hereby certified by terms agreed upon this day between the Hyda Chiefs of Skidegate, Gold Harbor, Masset and Clue, and also the Cape Fox and Tongass trib
es, that all of the claims of the Fox tribes against the aforesaid Hyda tribes are satisfied in full; and that there is now peace made in our presence between the aforesaid peoples. Signed on behalf of the Hydas, Chief Skidegate and Chief Nin-jing-wash; on behalf of the Cape Fox tribes, Chief Kah-shakes and Chief Kad-da-shan. Witnessed by T. Crosby, John Ryan, and Chief Dudoward. We trust that no trouble will ever rise between them again, and that all concerned may have the blessing of the Divine Master, who said, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’”

  The End.

  LAMPLIGHTER

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