Kalitan, Our Little Alaskan Cousin Part 2

"We shall stay in camp until the blue jay comes," said the old chief, smiling, "and then seek the village of my people."

"What does the blue jay mean?" asked Ted, timidly, for he was very much in awe of this grave old man.

Kalitan said something in Thlinkit to his uncle, and the old chief, looking kindly at the boy, replied with, a nod:

"I will tell you the story of the blue jay," he said.

"My story is of the far, far north. Beside a salmon stream there dwelt people rich in slaves. These caught and dried the salmon for the winter, and nothing is better to eat than dried salmon dipped in seal oil. All the fish were caught and stored away, when lo! the whiteness fell from heaven and the snows were upon them. It was the time of snow and they should not have complained, but the chief was evil and he cursed the whiteness. No one should dare to speak evil of the Snow Spirit, which comes from the Unknown! Deeper and deeper grew the snow. It flew like feathers about the _eglu_,[5] and the slaves had many troubles in putting in limbs for the fire. Then the snow came in flakes so large they seemed like the wings of birds, and the house was covered, and they could no longer keep their _kyaks_ on top of the snow. All were shut tight in the house, and their fire and food ran low. They knew not how many days they were shut in, for there was no way to tell the day from night, only they knew they were sore hungry and that the Snow Spirit was angry and terrible in his anger.

[Footnote 5: Hut.]

"But each one spoke not; he only chose a place where he should lie down and die when he could bear no more.

"Only the chief spoke, and he once. 'Snow Spirit,' he said aloud, 'I alone am evil. These are not so. Slay me and spare!' But the Snow Spirit answered not, only the wind screamed around the _eglu_, and his screams were terrible and sad. Then hope left the heart of the chief and he prepared to die with all his people and all his slaves.

"But on the day when their last bit of food was gone, lo! something pecked at the top of the smoke-hole, and it sang 'Nuck-tee,' and it was a blue jay. The chief heard and saw and wondered, and, looking 'neath the smoke-hole, he saw a scarlet something upon the floor. Picking it up, he found it was a bunch of Indian tomato berries, red and ripe, and quickly hope sprang in his breast.

"'Somewhere is summer,' he cried, 'Let us up and away.'

"Then the slaves hastened to dig out the canoe, and they drew it with mighty labour, for they were weak from fasting, over the snows to the sh.o.r.e, and there they launched it without sail or paddle, with all the people rejoicing. And after a time the wind carried them to a beach where all was summer. Birds sang, flowers bloomed, and berries gleamed scarlet in the sun, and there were salmon jumping in the blue water.

They ate and were satisfied, for it was summer on the earth and summer in their hearts.

"That is how the Thlinkits came to our island, and so we say when the snow breaks, that now comes the blue jays."

"Thank you for telling us such a dandy story." cried Ted, who had not lost a word of this quaint tale, told so graphically over the camp-fire of the old chief Klake.

CHAPTER III

TO THE GLACIER

Ted slept soundly all night, wrapped in the bearskins from the sledge, in the little tent he shared with his father. When the morning broke, he sprang to his feet and hurried out of doors, hopeful for the day's pleasures. The snow had stopped, but the ground was covered with a thick white pall, and the mountains were turned to rose colour in the morning sun, which was rising in a blaze of glory.

"Good morning, Kalitan," shouted Ted to his Indian friend, whom he spied heaping wood upon the camp-fire. "Isn't it dandy? What can we do to-day?"

"Have breakfast," said Kalitan, briefly. "Then do what Tyee says."

"Well, I hope he'll say something exciting." said Ted.

"Think good day to hunt," said Kalitan, as he prepared things for the morning meal.

"Where did you get the fish?" asked Ted.

"Broke ice-hole and fished when I got up," said the Thlinkit.

"You don't mean you have been fis.h.i.+ng already," exclaimed the lazy Ted, and Kalitan smiled as he said:

"White people like fish. Tyee said: 'Catch fish for Boston men's breakfast,' and I go."

"Do you always mind him like that?" asked Ted. He generally obeyed his father, but there were times when he wasn't anxious to and argued a little about it. Kalitan looked at him in astonishment.

"He chief!" he said, simply.

"What will we do with the camp if we all go hunting?" asked Ted.

"Nothing," said Kalitan.

"Leave Chetwoof to watch, I suppose," I continued Ted.

"Watch? Why?" asked Kalitan.

"Why, everything; some one will steal our things," said Ted.

"Thlinkits not steal," said Kalitan, with dignity. "Maybe white man come along and steal from his brothers; Indians not. If we go away to long hunt, we _cache_ blankets and no one would touch."

"What do you mean by _cache_?" asked Ted.

"We build a mound hut near the house, and put there the blankets and stores. Sometime they stay there for years, but no one would take from a _cache_. If one has plenty of wood by the seash.o.r.e or in the forest, he may cord it and go his way and no one will touch it. A deer hangs on a tree where dogs may not reach it, but no stray hunter would slice even a piece. We are not thieves."

"It is a pity you could not send missionaries to the States, you Thlinkits, my boy," said Mr. Strong, who had come up in time to hear Kalitan's words, "I'm afraid white people are less honest."

"Teddy, do you know we are to have some hunting to-day, and that you'll get your first experience with a glacier."

"Hurrah," shouted Ted, dancing up and down in excitement.

"Tyee Klake says we can hunt toward the base of the glacier, and I shall try to go a little ways upon it and see how the land lies, or, rather, the ice. It is getting warmer, and, if it continues a few days, the snow will melt enough to let us go over to that island you are so anxious to see."

Ted's eyes shone, and the amount of breakfast he put away quite prepared him for his day's work, which, pleasant though it might be, certainly was hard work. The chief said they must seek the glacier first before the sun got hot, for it was blinding on the snow. So they set out soon after breakfast, leaving Chetwoof in charge of the camp, and with orders to catch enough fish for dinner.

"We'll be ready to eat them, heads and tails," said Ted, and his father added, laughingly:

"'Bible, bones, and hymn-book, too.'"

"What does that mean?" asked Ted, as Kalitan looked up inquiringly.

"Once a writer named Macaulay said he could make a rhyme for any word in the English language, and a man replied, 'You can't rhyme Timbuctoo.' But he answered without a pause:

"If I were a Ca.s.sowary On the plains of Timbuctoo, I'd eat up a missionary, Bible, bones, and hymn-book, too."

Ted laughed, but Kalitan said, grimly:

"Not good to eat Boston missionary, he all skin and bone!"

"Where did they get the name Alaska?" asked Ted, as they tramped over the snow toward the glacier.