ADVENTURES CARVED IN WOOD.

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 72, 18 December 1928, Page 37 (Supplement)

ADVENTURES CARVED IN WOOD.

Indian Totem Poles Tell of Great Exploits.

Memorials to the dead are now usually made of bronze or stone, but the North American Indian erected tombstones of native cedar wood, grotesquely carved and painted to represent

the animals of the forest, and the fish of the sea.

These are known as totem poles, and are still in evidence to-day in such parts as the coastal villages of Alaska and the Skeena river valley of British Columbia. They are certainly worthy monuments to a race which is fast dying out, and, realising their archaeological value, the Government of Canada has taken definite steps to preserve them.

With this end in view, they have organised and sent out a party for the purpose of reconstructing and preserving these ancient tombstones, as they will eventually remain the only tangible link between the uncultured redskin and the civilised white man.

The pole itself was usually made by the master carver of the tribe, on the instructions of the dead Indian nep-

hew (his sister’s son), who inherited his name or title. Now, if the successor of the dead man was sufficiently wealthy, he would hire the services of the best sculptor of the tribe to carve on the pole. In cases, however, where the relatives were poor, the services of one less skilled was employed. Consequently, poles- that exist to-day are varied, some being without doubt works of art, while others are actually ugly. The craftsman who was given an order by one of the tribe for a totem pole, or family tombstone, usually selected cedar wood, as it gave itself very readily to carving. When the log had been stripped of its branches, and its surface smoothed off, the carver would set to work to design . the symbols which had been selected by the relatives of the dead man.

These carvings differ greatly in thei

meanings. In some cases tney represented the person in whose honour they were being erected. Others represented one or more characters connected with the history of the family, but more often the characters showed mythological events and beings which existd only in the minds of the Indians themselves.

There are four great Indian brotherhoods on tl.e northern coast of British Columbia, whose chief symbols are the wolf, the raven, the eagle, and the killer whale. In addition to these symbols there are others of less consequence, which may be substituted ior the principal symbols. A raven pole might often be carved to represent a Various legends are depicted on these totem poles. For instance, in the Skeena .Valley, there lived an Indian family whose" totems represented a mountain lion. This refers to the killuig of a ferocious mountain lion by one of the warriors of the tribe, who so saved the elan from extinction. Another family would not dream of including a mountain lion on its poles, as the symbol of the lion is the exclusive property of the one family. Totem poles are a genealogical record, more or less, of a particular family. and the pole is usually found erected outside the present owner s house. The wife’s totem takes the top position, the husband’s follows, and so the family continues down the pole. W hen passing, any native can tel! at a glance to what family those inside belong, and is, therefore, able to decide whether or not he will receive a welcome. Yet when first discovered, the totem poles of the Indians were thought to be only the idols of a pagan race. Now, however; they are being highly prized.

Friend: “You’ve given that boy of mine a trial. Do you think there is much hope for him in the journalistic profession?” Newspaper Editor: “I’m afraid not. Only this morning he wrote, ’The church was crowded’ instead of ‘The sacred edifice was thronged.’ ” ♦ $ ♦

“You boy, over in the corner!” cried the schoolmaster. 'The boy over in the corner shot up like a bolt. “Answer this,' continued the schoolmaster: “Do we eat the flesh of the whale”

“Y-y-yes, sir,” faltered the scholar. “And what.” pursued the master, “do we do with the bones?” “Why, sir,” responded the boy. "we leave them on the sides of our plates.”

A motor-car in South London mounted the pavement and knocked down a man, who was quite unhurt and picked himself up, laughing. The trouble is that pedestrians so rarely realise when motor-cars are just being play-